Dark Angel Alphabetically
by vintage.soul494
Summary: Series of one shots for each letter of the alphabet, prompts from Nickledime17
1. AB

Author's Note: Ok, so this is my first ever fanfiction. I decided to use Nickledime17's alphabet prompt. I'd love to hear what ya'll think. :) Since this is the first story I've posted, I'm not really sure what I'm doing yet so please, bear with me, and let me know about any screw ups I make.

Disclaimer: I don't own Dark Angel or Jensen Ackles. Sad. I know, makes me cry too. :P

**ANYTHING**

Original Cindy stood on top of the roof of the command center of Terminal City and stared unseeingly at the Freak Nation flag the snapped proudly in the breeze. She was back for a visit, her time with her friends had to be carefully monitored because of the toxins that kept their home moderately safe. Max and Alec were busy trying to solve a food shortage problem and she'd been left alone with her thoughts in the meantime.

She was thinking about Max. Her boo, her friend, her sister. There was something about that girl that made the people in her live willing to do damn near anything for her. Brother Zack for instance, he had allowed himself to be recaptured by Manticore to save Max from that same fate. He had forced himself to forget everything but some part of him had never been able to let the memory of Max go. He had even put a bullet in his brain in order to give her the heart she needed to live.

Brother Ben was another example, one that she'd only recently learned of, from Alec of all people. Crazy killer with a truly whacked out obsession with teeth, he had gotten Max to snap his neck. Alec had been trying to drink himself into a stupor when he'd let that little gem slip. According to what Max had told him, he wanted to die rather than go back to Manticore but Alec had another theory. He thought that Ben had known that the two of them would never make it out of the woods with Lydecker and his men closing in if he and his broken leg were slowing them down. He was pretty sure that Ben had chosen death as much to save Maxie as he had to save himself.

Logan Cale, the infamous Eyes Only, loved her boo so much that he'd put his own life on hold after watching her die. Hardly sleeping, barely eating, his sole purpose in life had been to bring Manticore down. And then when Max had come back to him, he'd been so in love with her that not even a genetically engineered retrovirus that made a single touch deadly had been enough to make him let her go.

Normal, annoying man that he was, always threatened to fire Max. Never did though. Her boo was never on time and failed to show up for work for days at a time, for months on end, without ever giving a real excuse and yet the girl still had a job right up until the place had been under siege. Hell Normal had told her girl that she'd always have a home at Jam Pony. Who'd have thought that that uptight white boy had enough of a heart to say that?

Even Sketchy, finding out the girl had been made in a test tube, hadn't been enough to keep him spun for long and she had to give her boy props for that. He'd done a complete 180 from thinking of transgenics as a threat to thinking of them as friends. He'd been willing to step up to the plate and stand shoulder to shoulder with Max and her family, helping turn public opinion in their favor thru his writing.

And Alec, not matter how Max yelled at him and kicked him around; he'd drop whatever he had going to have her back. Oh, he'd whine and complain, plenty. O.C. knew that it was just an act. Wouldn't do to have Max know just how much she had him under her thumb.

Her boo was one lucky girl. Sure she was under siege and things weren't exactly coming up roses but with friends like hers, willing to do anything for her? O.C. knew it was gonna be "all good all de time" as Herbal Thought used to say.

** BRICK**

Alec had done a lot of growing up since the night he'd swaggered into her cell at Manticore, spouting off about how they'd been paired off as breeding partners. He'd changed for the better in a lot of ways. He was a great 2IC, and had a knack for public relations that bordered on genius. So when he'd approached her to tell her that he had an idea that would benefit all the denizens of Terminal City, she'd been willing to sit down and listen to his latest scheme. But by the time he was half way through his proposal she was staring at him in stunned disbelief and her hands were itching to reach out and slap him.

A bar. That was his idea of a beneficial project. Never mind that there were shortages of food and water and power. Never mind that what little money they had at the moment was being used to arm them in case things took an ugly turn. Alec thought that all of that should be set aside so that they could set up a bar.

"Are you crazy?!" She said, unable to keep quiet or listen to his blathering any longer. So patience had never been her strong suit but in cases like this, who could blame her? She could see him opening his mouth to say something but cut him off before he could utter a sound.

"We've got the police and the national guard breathing down our necks. We've got more problems to solve than we've got hours in the day and rumor has it that there's a call to have the army come and wipe us out and you want to put everything on hold to build a bar?" She was literally shaking with anger by the time she stopped shouting.

_Damn she's hot when she's pissed, _Alec thought, trying to rein in his thoughts enough to explain his reasoning to the irate woman in front of him. "Max just listen to me for a minute." He did his best to sound reasonable even as he watched her start to pace. She was so tense he was surprised she hadn't snapped and she wasn't alone. "Everyone around here is wound up tighter than a drum. People are scared, they're nervous and it's starting to show. Fights are breaking out all over Terminal City and its only going to get worse. We need to have something, some way for everyone to relax and unwind."

She raised an eyebrow but didn't say anything and he took it as a sign that he should continue. "Now I've managed to pull some strings with my contacts and I've got some stuff coming in. Televisions, game stations, a pool table, and I figured that we could set up a rec area but I think we need something more. A place sort of like Crash; where the older X's and anomalies can get together and hang out. I mean nothing helped us relax after a long day more than swinging by Crash, having a few beers with the gang right?"

He could see that he was getting through to her and honestly it shocked the hell out of him. He was still used to being the screw up that she dismissed out of hand.

Max's mind was going a mile a minute. She hated to admit it but Alec had a point. The tension in TC was approaching the breaking point and it should be defused as fast as possible. Having a rec center and a bar would be a good way to do that and it would foster a sense of community that was still badly needed. She found herself nodding slowly. "Do it." She said.

Alec stared at her blinking for a while, unable to believe that she'd actually just said that.

"We can get people to help on a volunteer basis." She continued, "So that we aren't pulling manpower away from other projects." She glanced over at Alec and was suddenly struck by just how handsome he was. There was a glint in his eyes that she suddenly found impossibly sexy. _Sexy? I did not just think of Alec as sexy! I must be going into heat. _She thought in shock.

She knew that that wasn't the case though, almost as soon as she'd considered the idea. She was just trying to justify her reaction. She couldn't take her eyes off of him. It was like a switch had been thrown in her brain and she was suddenly seeing clearly for the first time and to see him was to want him.

She wanted him. Alec's head jerked up and he stared at her in shock. He could smell it in the air, her arousal, could see it in her heated gaze. He took an involuntary step towards her, instinct taking hold. He'd wanted her as his mate for so long he couldn't remember when he'd fallen in love with her.

He let out a long rumbling growl that sent a shiver down her spine and she found herself taking a tentative step towards him. Before she knew what was happening she was being crushed up against him, her body melting into his. He stared into her eyes questioningly until they fluttered closed. Then he was kissing her and the whole world disappeared. Nothing was real except for the feel of his lips on hers. She gave herself over to the kiss, allowing herself to surrender to him but even transgenics had to come up for air eventually and it was enough to let reality crash back in. She shoved him away, struggling to get her breath back.

"Get out of my office." She ordered, her discomfort over her reaction making her sound more pissed off than she was.

He looked at her in confusion but left without comment for once, but not before she saw the hurt in his eyes.

_6 weeks later_

Max stood and walked away from the computer where she had just held her last video conference call with Logan. Brushing the tears away from her eyes, desperately trying to stem their flow, she hurried to her apartment. She'd finally ended things with Logan for good. That morning in her office with Alec had ended up being the last nail in the coffin of her relationship with the ordinary. It had forced her to do some thinking. Alec was right; they were a danger to them, the ordinaries. And as much as she tried to convince herself that she loved Logan she had to admit she was kidding herself. She did love him but she wasn't in love with him and hadn't been for a while now. Her attraction to her 2IC had been a wake up call.

She was ready to move on. And as scary as it was, she wanted to move on with Alec. It had taken a lot of soul searching and more than one late night talk with O.C. to forced her to admit that the attraction was more than physical and that the thought of losing him caused something in her chest to tighten and her breath to catch in her throat. They hadn't spoken, except when it was absolutely necessary since the kiss and she found herself missing him more than she'd ever thought possible.

She knew that she had fallen in love with Alec; she just hoped that her reaction to the kiss hadn't ruined her chances forever. She applied her makeup with a shaking hand before dragging a brush through her long hair. She'd thought carefully about what to wear tonight and had finally settled on a pair of skintight black jeans and a red halter-top. If she ended up making a fool of herself, she wanted to look damn good while she did it. She made her way across the city on foot, heading towards the bar that had been finished that morning. She knew most of the residents of Terminal City would be there for the "grand opening" and was hoping to find Alec among them.

She came to a stop in front of the squat two-story building. The ground floor held the rec room that Alec had put together and the top floor was the bar, space was at a premium, with so many people and so few buildings intact, so it only made sense to house both spaces under one roof. Taking a deep breath, she made her way inside.

To say that Alec had been hurt by Max's reaction would have been a gross understatement. He'd been crushed. There had been more than one time over the last six weeks when the idea of leaving Seattle for parts unknown had held more than a little appeal but he knew he was needed here, that he had family here, and somehow, he'd never made it past the gate.

Joshua, oddly enough, had been the glue that held him together. He figured Josh knew Max better than almost anyone but O.C. and had gone to him for advice and the dog boy had insisted that Little Fella was in love with Medium Fella and that he just needed to wait for her to realize it. Josh seemed convinced that Max would come to her senses soon enough and his faith carried Alec through.

He felt a large furry hand clasp his shoulder, pulling him out of his introspection and turned to see the friend he'd just been thinking off. Joshua was grinning happily. Alec assumed that it was because the bar that they'd worked so hard on was finally complete. "It's pretty cool isn't it?" He asked.

Josh nodded excitedly. "It is cool but that's not why Joshua is smiling." The dog man replied, his grin growing to epic proportions. "Max is here." He said pointing. "Max is finally coming to Alec."

Alec turned and the sight of her was almost enough to take his breath away. She looked beautiful. Well, she was always beautiful, but tonight she was amazing. He grinned at Joshua, the smile only a little fake, and watched his friend disappear into the crowd.

Max came to a stop right in front of Alec, her eyes drinking in the sight of him. The music coming out of the old jukebox they'd found was loud and she stepped closer to him, not wanting to have to yell to be heard over it.

"I'm sorry." She said, trying not to choke on the words. She didn't make apologies often or easily. Even as sincere as she was it was hard to say. "I'm sorry I pushed you away."

He just looked at her, his face that expressionless Manticore mask that they all knew how to don so well. Obviously, he wasn't going to make this easy on her. That was aright, she hadn't expected him too, she told herself.

"I broke things off with Logan tonight." She told him hesitantly.

"Again?" Came his sardonic reply.

"For good." She told him emphatically.

"Why's that Maxie?" He asked, his tone mocking. As much as he wanted to hear that she'd done it for him, he didn't believe for a second that that was the reason. It was probably her fear of the virus killing Logan that was behind it.

"I told him that I'd fallen in love with someone else." She said calmly, although her composure was all an act. She was terrified that he'd reject her or that she'd end up as just another notch on his bedpost. "I told him that I was in love with you."

Alec felt his heart skip a beat. Was it possible that Joshua was right and that Max really did have feelings for him? He ruthlessly shoved the thought away; he wasn't going to allow himself to hope. "So I'm the excuse again? Why do you always make me the bad guy Max?"

She was shaking her head before he was even done talking. "No Alec. I told him that you didn't know how I felt and that even if you didn't feel the same or if you weren't willing to be with me, things were still over because I'm not in love with him anymore."

Alec was stunned. He opened and closed his mouth several times without making a sound before he finally pulled himself together enough to make a reply.

Watching him, Max knew that he was about to say something smart alecky; something that would undoubtedly make her mad and this whole thing would end in a fight. She did the only thing she could, she wrapped her hand gently around the back of his neck, cupping his barcode, and pulled him down towards her, forcing him to look into her eyes. "I love you Alec." She said before leaning up and kissing him.

He stiffened in shock but slowly relaxed enough to return the kiss. When he finally pulled back, needing to catch his breath, he tensed again, expecting her to lash out like she did the last time but she didn't she just snuggle against his chest and sighed happily. He began to look around exaggeratedly forcing her to ask him what he was doing.

"Just looking for the brick that hit you over the head and finally knocked some sense into you."

He couldn't help his happy grin as she swatted him upside the back of his head gently. He looked down at her with a chuckle. "Gotta live up to the name you gave me Maxie. Wouldn't want to disappoint."

He leaned down and kissed her again, this time briefly but still passionately. "I love you too." He told her, dropping all his masks and letting her see the love he felt for her shining in his eyes. He was about to kiss her again when the transgenics and transhumans in the bar broke out into applause, Mole going so far as to wolf whistle before yelling, "About damn time. Damn X-5. Always doing things the hard way!"


	2. CD

AUTHOR'S NOTE: Thanks so much to everyone that took the time to review. :) It really helped me work up the courage to continue this.

DISCLAIMER: I don't own it and it makes me cry. :P

**COLD**

11 weeks ago, Logan found the cure and I thought that all of my dreams were about to come true. After more than a year of dancing around each other we were finally going to be together, this fairy tale was going to have a happy ending. Well, it would as soon as the standoff with the ordinaries was over and we were free to walk the streets like every other American.

It didn't take me long to realize that I was wrong about living happily ever after. It started with Alec. We'd become close friends after the siege at Jam Pony; telling him about Ben seemed to have been the milestone that made it possible for us to actually talk instead of just arguing. I'd almost go so far as to call him my best friend. O.C. and I will always be sisters but with her on one side of the fence and me on the other I'd found myself confiding in Alec more and more. It happened so gradually that it was hard to pin point the exact moment there was no antagonism, just friendship between us.

Right up until I told him that Logan had found the cure, I had never thought deeply enough about what Alec and I had to bother to put a name on it. In a heartbeat though, he became a stranger and as the days passed he changed more and more. Gone was the cocky, smart aleck we all had grown to love and in his place was a cold, distant solider. It got to where the others would snap to attention when he walked into the room, calling him sir, even saluting him.

I don't know how to act around him anymore. I had never realized how the way that we traded snarky comments and fought helped keep me relaxed and grounded. I'd come to count on him having my back in any situation and his sudden absence was… well it sucked.

I tried to talk to Joshua about it but he'd just shaken his head sadly and looked at me with more disappointment than I'd ever thought those blue eyes could hold. "Little Fella looks but she doesn't see, feels but doesn't trust. Joshua can't help Little Fella." And he had walked away. It was like I had four pillars that held me up, Alec, Joshua, O.C., and Logan and two of the three had just been kicked out from under me and the other two were far enough away that they almost didn't count. I was reeling so I did what I always do, I ran. Not literally, because I needed my freak family, probably more than they needed me, but by burying myself in work instead. I spent so much time in HQ that Dix asked if he could give my apartment to someone else.

Two nights ago, I was in my office when I ran out of paperwork to do. For the first time in 11 weeks, I was alone with my thoughts, with nothing to distract me and I didn't like the direction that my thoughts were taking me in. I thought about calling O.C. but it was 4 in the morning and she might love me but I don't think there was a soul on earth that would have blamed her for killing me if I woke her up. Which meant that I didn't have much choice but to sit and think this bitch through myself.

In the end it was putting myself in Alec's shoes that made me realize what was going on. I asked myself how I would feel if he came to me and told me that Rachel was alive and that they could finally be together. There was a moment of fear, fear that I would lose him, that I would be alone. Then I could feel myself shutting down. It's something that had been drilled into us at Manticore, that feelings are a liability. They also taught us how to lock those feelings away. Suddenly I felt nothing but cold and empty and I started to shake. Was this what Alec had felt? I couldn't blame him for shutting down and distancing himself if this is how he felt.

It took awhile but an hour ago I finally asked myself why I'd felt the way I did at the thought of Alec being with Rachel. The answer? I loved him. Damn it. Why couldn't my strange little life ever be easy?

Half an hour ago I'd ended my video call to Logan. I was glad that I had taken the cure, I still loved him and I didn't want him to die if I accidentally touched him, but I wasn't in love with him and things between us were over. He hadn't taken the news well but he told me that he wanted me to be happy. Thinking about it? I don't think it will take him too long to move on. After all Asha's been waiting in the wings for a while now.

Ten minutes ago I left my dusty apartment, after doing my best to look like a girl for once. It was so cold outside that even my transgenic tolerance for low temperatures was being put to the test. It didn't take me long to make my way over to Alec's apartment, even if I was dragging my feet a little.

I found myself picking the lock because he didn't bother to answer when I knocked. I could tell by his breathing that he was awake and alone. He was sitting on the couch staring into space when I came it. It hurt, the way he didn't bother to look at me or even acknowledge that I was there but I shook it off and made my way into his kitchen. Grabbing a bag of chips and a couple of beers I allowed myself to plop down onto the couch next to him gracelessly. It took some real effort not to grin when he finally turned to face me, let me tell you.

"What are you doing here Max?" he asked. You would have thought he was talking to Renfro or White his tone oozed with so much hostility.

"Oh, you know, just doing what any normal girl would do, coming to cry on my best friend's shoulder after breaking up with my boyfriend." I just raised an eyebrow at the shocked expression on his face before propping my feet up on his coffee table. "Normally, the situation would call for ice cream and a manicure but I didn't think you'd be up for that, given the givens."

"You broke up with Logan?" Well would you look at that, the hostility? Gone. Of course his voice and face were equally devoid of emotions. My guess would be he wasn't having nearly as much fun with this as I was. "How long will it last this time before you go running back to Prince Charming?"

I pretended to think about it and had to bite the inside of my cheek to stop the grin of triumph that was trying to turn up the corners of my mouth. There was anger lurking in those cold hazel eyes. Now we were getting somewhere. "Hmmm…probably for good this time, since I'm in love with someone else."

"What?" He was almost choking on the word. I might have kept teasing him but I noticed that the anger was turning into despair. The Manticore mask that we'd all learned so well was starting to fall quickly into place, guess that meant now would be a good time to fill him in on my epiphany.

"Yeah. I was sitting in my office the other night, thinking you know? And I realized that I'd been in love with this guy for a long time. I just never admitted it to myself because well, the thing with Logan and me was comfortable, it was…I guess you could say a habit."

"And now you're kicking the habit? Who's the lucky guy?" My eyes narrowed as he almost spit the words out at me, if this had been a cartoon you'd have seen smoke pouring out his ears.

I just shrugged, feeling nervous and unsure for the first time. Biting the bullet, turned to him, blurring so that I was straddling him before he had a chance to react. I bury my fingers in his soft dirty blond hair, leaning forward so that my lips were just barely touching his. "You, stupid."

Three hours later, I tried to slide out of his arms, thinking he was asleep. I looked over my shoulder to see him opening one eye, a dangerous growl making his chest rumble. He looked so cute I couldn't help but grin. "Just going to grab a drink." His hand shot out, fingers encircling my wrist in a grip as strong as steel, pulling me back down beside him with one sharp yank.

"Mine." He growled before dragging me close for a kiss.

When I finally pulled away to catch my breath, I stared into his eyes, losing myself in his stare. "I love you Alec." I told him in a whisper. "Forever."

Any lingering insecurities seemed to vanish and he let go of my wrist. "What made you realize that you loved me?" He asked in that smart aleck tone of voice that I loved so much.

"Your ass?" I said, pretending to think about it. "It is one of your best features."

**DAUGHTER**

Zack leaned down and placed a gentle kiss on his wife's lips. They had been married for three years and he found himself falling more in love with her everyday. She knew him better than anyone in the world. Stepping away he lifted the camera he'd brought with him and studied her through the lens before snapping a picture. Her sable curls tumbled around her shoulders, framing her face with its full lips and creamy caramel skin. She was beautiful. But what he loved most about her were her eyes. Dark brown, they were so expressive, that you never had to wonder what she was thinking; it always shone in her eyes for anyone to read. They really were the window to her soul.

"I don't think I've ever been happier than I am right now." He told her, voice husky and intimate, his own eyes lighting up at the sight of the smile on her face.

She was about to say something but a cry from the bassinet beside the bed cut her off. Zack felt his throat tighten as he watched her lift their daughter up and cradle her close to her chest. She was even more beautiful than her mother if that was possible with dark curls, caramel skin and piercing blue eyes. They made quite a sight, the two most important women in his life as they looked into each other's eyes and cooed.

"What do you think we should name her?" She asked, her voice full of love.

"Max." He said immediately and grinned when she nodded.

"It's a beautiful name, Adam. I'm sure your sister would be honored that we named our daughter after her."

Zack looked at his wife in wonder. She knew all about Max and his past and she not only still loved him but accepted him as well. There was no jealousy or uncertainty clouding their marriage. He may have started dating her because she reminded him of Max but he married her because she was her own woman and he loved her more than anything on earth. Well, anything except the daughter they had made together, that is.


	3. EF

ENOUGH Author's Note: Thanks again to everyone that's taken the time to review. I'm planning on replying to each of you personally but things have been a little hectic. My goal is to write and post two letters everyday until this is done. ;) Cutting it a little close today but I think I'll get it in under the deadline. Lol

Disclaimer: Still don't own it, so don't sue. Not that you can get blood from a stone.

**ENOUGH**

Max was sitting on top of the Space Needle brooding again. Mole had spotted her and called Alec's cell to let him know, putting an end to almost an hour of searching. It wasn't safe for any of them to be alone these days because the situation with the ordinaries was still too volatile. Max knew better than to leave Terminal City alone and she knew better than to leave without telling the rest of Command where to find her. Which meant that this was more than one of her usual "oh woe is me, my touch can kill my "we're not even like that" boyfriend" brooding sessions. Alec approached her carefully, always a wise thing to do when you haven't had a chance to assess Max's mood yet.

"Everything ok, Maxie?" He asked, common sense kicking in too late to keep him from using the hated nickname.

She growled without bothering to turn around. It was quite possibly the most feral sound he'd ever heard a Manticore alum make. And damn if that wasn't saying a lot.

"My name is Max." She snapped, ignoring his question.

"I'll take that as a no." He said, sitting down next to her, chaffing his hands together for warmth. For a long time he didn't get the appeal of the place, it was always so cold up here. Until Max told him about Ben and the high place, that is. Now he understood it, still didn't like it up here as much as she did, but he understood.

"So are you going to tell me what's got you all worked up or did you want to hear about my day?" They both knew it was a thinly veiled threat. Either Max would open up willingly or Alec would talk incessantly until she caved and told him the problem. He wasn't surprised when she decided to talk, she was stubborn not stupid, he thought with a grin.

A grin that fell away like it had never been when she turned to look at him and he caught his first glimpse of her tear stained face. This was Maxie, she didn't cry. The night that she told him about Ben, she'd shed a few tears but it was nothing like the hysterical sobbing it would have taken to get her in this state. "Max?" He asked, unable to hide his building concern.

"You sure you want to hear about this?" Max asked with a weary little smile, "It's more of the kind of thing I'd talk to O.C. about."

He shook his head, sending up a secret prayer that the talk wasn't about a menstrual cycle or something along those lines. "Whatever it is Max, you can talk to me about it. It's my job to lend an ear, a shoulder to cry on, or my body…" He trailed off, wiggling his eyebrows suggestively, trying to wring a chuckle out of her. He winced with his usual amount of exaggeration when she slapped him upside the back of the head. "Come on Max! Its in my SIC contract." Her snort of amusement filled him with elation.

"Come on, tell Uncle Alec all about it." He reached out and pulled her up against his side, throwing his arm around her shoulder. Her skin was freezing, he realized, and pulled away long enough to pull his leather jacket off and wrap it around her shoulders.

He could see that the gesture surprised Max, she knew how much he hated the cold but it still sort of made him question just how much of a jack ass she thought he was. He didn't have much time to think about it though because she had finally decided to start talking.

"I went by to see Logan earlier."

"Okay…." Figures that Logan was involved, he always was.

"He was with Asha."

"Okay…." It took a minute but eventually he caught on to the subtext. "With Asha…like in bed with Asha?"

"More like on the table."

"Awww come on Max…enough already. You can fill me in but can we skip the graphic details because my imagination is just too vivid and as hot as I'm sure Asha is naked, the thought of Logan's hairy white ass is enough to make me sick to my stomach." He was babbling, he knew it, but he needed to stall for time, let his brain catch up a little with the latest development in the drama of Max's life. And then there was that rage that was starting to boil in the pit of his stomach.

"Sorry…go on. I'm shutting up now." He told her, miming zipping his mouth shut, locking it, and throwing away the key.

The sight of Logan and Asha had ripped a gasp from Max. She didn't notice it but the two of them did. Logan jumped up, desperately trying to yank his pants back up into place. "Max…this isn't what it looks like. Let me explain."

Asha was doing her best to cover herself. Max almost felt bad for the blond, the tears in her eyes indicating that Logan's attempt to explain her away cut deep. "You need to leave." She told the other woman, the words as close to a growl as humanly possible. She felt bad but not that bad. There was a flash of fear before Asha nodded and practically ran for the door.

"So if its not what it looks like than what is it Logan?" Max asked, head tilted slightly to the side, eyes watching his every moment like a jungle cat watching its prey.

"Max…" he cleared his throat nervously. "Since you came back…things have been different. You've been different. I've tried to make allowances but you're not the girl you were, the girl that I fell in love with." He took her raised eyebrow as encouragement to continue. "I don't know if its what they did to you there or if its because you've been spending too much time with Alec and Joshua but you're not…as human any more."

"So what you're telling me, is that you ended up banging Asha on the table because I'm not human ENOUGH?" The reasonable tone of voice that she started speaking in quickly dissolved into an undignified screech.

Alec surged to his feet. "He said that to you? He had the nerve to blame it on you and tell you that you weren't human enough?" He was shaking in rage. In a distant part of his brain he realized that his reaction was strange but it was too distant to concern him.

Max just nodded miserably. Tears starting to slip down her cheeks again.

"Why?" She asked him in a broken whisper. He never wanted to hear her sound like that again.

"Why what Maxie?" he asked, distracted by the various ways he could dismember Logan that were flashing through his head.

"Why wasn't I enough?"

Alec literally felt his jaw drop and he sank back down heavily to sit beside her. Reaching out he grabbed her jaw and forced her to turn and look at him.

"It wasn't you. You weren't the one that wasn't enough. You are beautiful Max. You are strong and smart and kick ass with the best of us. Logan's the one that's not enough. He's probably threatened because you're stronger and smarter and better looking than he could ever hope to be. He's trying to prove something with this whole Eyes Only gig, trying to make himself feel bigger than he is and I'm pretty sure that his ego couldn't handle you when you suddenly got the spot light and he wasn't the one calling the shots anymore."

Max had been starting at him, mouth open in surprise, since the second that he started to rant. He bit lightly on his lower lip for a second before he lost the internal battle he'd been fighting. Leaning forward, he cupped one hand around the back of her neck, fingers resting lightly on her barcode, his other hand sliding up to bury itself in her thick silken hair before he pulled her forward slowly, giving her plenty of time to pull away. Seeing that she wasn't going to he lowered his head a fraction of an inch at a time, until his lips brushed feather light against hers.

A gentle sigh escaped her at the touch of his mouth on hers and it was all the encouragement he needed to let go of his control and kiss her with all of the passion that had been building in him since he'd stepped into her cell that first night back at Manticore. And she kissed him back.

"Logan is an idiot," He said matter of factly as he pulled back just a little, "It's not that you're not enough Max, it's that you're so amazing. I know I'll never get enough."

"Oh shut up and kiss me already Pretty Boy." She said with a happily little laugh before dragging him back down to her.

**FROSTING**

Max was standing in the kitchen humming happily to herself when she heard the sound of keys rattling as the door to the apartment was unlocked. "Hey you!" She called out, her whole face lighting up. "Come in here, you've got to see this!"

Alec came bounding into the kitchen, a wicked grin making his face look devilishly handsome and boyish at the same time. "Something smells good, whatcha makin' Maxie?"

"Cake," She told him unable to stop herself from grinning back at him, pointing to the chocolate cake cooling on the counter, waiting to be frosted. "This is the seventh try but I think I finally got it right." A small amount of doubt leaked into her eyes and caused her lips to turn downward into a frown.

"Cake?" He asked trying to sneak past her, intent on sampling it. She slapped his hand away, without even looking.

"Don't touch its not for you. Its for the birthday boy." She said seriously.

"Come on Max! Just one little taste, gotta let me sample it so we know if it turned out right, don't we?"

She rolled her eyes but allowed him to pinch a tiny piece off of the cake anyway. She watched anxiously as he popped it into his mouth, her good mood evaporating when he grimaced and swallowed painfully. "That bad?" She asked sadly.

"Horrible." He told her, hazel eyes twinkling with laughter. "I don't think we have any choice but to let me eat it all and save everyone else." He ducked away laughing as she swatted at him.

"Jerk." She muttered, turning away to grab the frosting, secretly pleased to have made something edible for once. Transgenics might have been able to do things like master the piano in a day but blessed few of them could cook. The only reason that the food in Terminal City hadn't been toxic was because the transhumans had done all of the cooking.

Alec headed into the living room and flopped down onto the couch as Max started to smear the frosting over the cake. "So what time does Joshua get here?"

"He's supposed to get here in about an hour. Everyone else is supposed to be here anytime now." She said, before starting to hum again, a knock at the door sounding as if on cue.

Before long the small apartment was full of friends and family. Logan, OC, Sketchy, Normal, Biggs, CeCe, Mole, Luke, Dix and the rest of the gang happily catching up with each other waiting for the birthday boy to arrive. Alec was the first to hear the sound of tell tale footsteps approaching, his hiss of warning sending the others scattering throughout the room to hide behind different pieces of furniture, only to jump out and yell "Surprise!" excitedly as the door opened. There was a grin on every face at the sound of the happy, if ear-piercing squeal of happiness that echoed in response.

Max came out of the kitchen carrying the cake she'd worked so hard to get perfect, five little candles lit, flames dancing merrily. "Happy Birthday, baby." She told the little boy cradled in Joshua's arms as everyone began to sing. She leaned against, Alec, her eyes filling with tears at the sight of their son. He looked just like his father, handsome and hazel eyes except for the dark hair that he'd gotten from her.

"He's gotten so big." She whispered to her mate, trying not to cry.

"Hey, is there any of that frosting left over?" He asked, trying not to laugh at the confusion on Max's face at the abrupt change of subject.

"A little, why?" She replied before catching a glimpse of the hungry look in his eyes.

"Oh…nothing, just thinking of something that it would taste so much better decorating." He informed her with practiced nonchalance before grinning.

"Smart aleck!" She accused, laughing and swatting at him playfully.

"Always Maxie, always."


	4. GH

Disclaimer: I don't own Dark Angel; I'm not doing this for profit, yada yada yada

Author's Note 1: I don't know if there is a reply button or something that lets you reply to a review like email, if there is I can't find it. So I just wanted to say thank you to darkaznangel452, p3karen, chica de los ojos café, nickledime17, JoJo2753, Deirax, and Celtergirl. If you hadn't all responded so encouragingly I don't know if I would have had the courage to keep posting.

Author's Note 2: In case any of you were wondering, I will probably never write a scene with Max and Logan as a romantic pairing. I don't understand the appeal, when she had guys like Zack and Alec around, how did she even notice him?

Author's Note 3: Last one I swear. I just wanted to say that I don't have beta so if you spot any errors, please let me know. I'm not much of an editor.

**GIRL**

Since the destruction of Manticore, Alec had been watching Max. He was a human chameleon, able to bend in with the ordinaries but he needed an example, a template if you will. The way he figured it, Max had more experience blending in than anyone else he knew, so he watched her.

He watched her for long enough that it became a habit. Right up until he realized that he was falling in love with her. Then he did what any sane, commitment phobic male would do, he avoided her like the plague. It pissed him off that it didn't make the feelings go away. He tried logic. Max was in love with Logan he told himself, and she could barely stand him. She didn't see him when she looked at him, she saw Ben. He wished someone had told him that logic held no sway over emotions.

He eventually managed to accept that she'd never return his feelings. He was ok with it too, right up until the day that she told him she trusted him. It was harder to settle for friendship after that. They had been prepping to rescue some X-7's that White had managed to get a hold of.

_"Alpha Team, enter through the south entrance. The control room is here, secure it and hack into the security cameras. You need to monitor Beta Team's progress, be ready to assist them if it looks like the Familiars are getting the upper hand." She said as they stood around the blueprints of the warehouse White was using to hold the kids. Logan had managed to dig them up somewhere but that was about all he'd managed to do to help. "Beta Team, give us 15 minutes before you set off the explosives. I'd rather use the time to get the kids out of there than look for them once you've got White's attention. Alec, you're with me. Any questions? Ok, let's go."_

_They moved swiftly and professionally when she commanded them to move out. Except for Alec, who was irritated with the assignment he'd been given. _

_"__What's the matter Maxie? Afraid I'll screw up if you're not there to watch me?" He questioned snidly._

_The look she'd given him then was full of genuine surprise. "No, I just trust you to have my back and I know that if things so sideway and something happens to me, you'll get the kids out." She replied, already moving toward their entry point. It was indisputable evidence that she did trust him, because she never doubted for a second that he'd be right behind her, close enough to hear her confession. And he was of course, falling just a little bit more in love with her each step of the way._

Manticore didn't design them to be chumps, which was the cause of his current dilemma. He loved Max, so he wanted her to be happy, even if it meant that she was with Logan. The problem with that was that Logan was hurting Max's ability to lead. Maybe it was the bits and pieces of animal that the scientists had spiked their DNA with but transgenics would only follow someone they view as an alpha. Logan's constant interference with Max's decisions and the way that she turned to him for help was making a lot of the residents of Terminal City doubt her alpha status. Only the fact that Alec, someone that many considered to be the Alpha Male, the top of the food chain, followed her, allowed her to continue to act as leader, but even that wasn't going to cut it much longer.

He'd considered trying to sit her down and explain it but somehow he knew it wouldn't do much good. It would just piss her off and make her run to Logan for comfort. In the end he'd gone to Original Cindy for advice. She didn't really have any to give but she did help him understand what it was that drew Max to the ordinary. What it boiled down to was that Logan made her feel like a girl. He treated her like a normal girl, wining and dining her but still trusting her to handle herself in dangerous situations.

Cindy believed that it was the only thing keeping them together. The fact that Logan, it least occasionally, made Max feel like the person she secretly wanted to be.

That revelation decided things for him. He loved Max. He needed to get Max away from Logan for the good of Terminal City. The way he saw it, he could kill two birds with one stone, he could woo Max for himself and once he had her affection he could help her get over her dependence on Logan. He just had to figure out how to do it, how to make her feel like a girl. He was genetically engineered to succeed. How hard could it be to do that and do it better than Logan?

AUTHOR'S NOTE: I know, I said I was done…sorry. I was thinking that it might be fun to write a companion piece to this about Alec's attempts to win Max over…thoughts?

**HERO**

They say that first impressions are lasting ones and as far as Alec goes that was true for a long time. My first impression told me that he was cocky, egotistical and self involved. And I guess in same ways he is, even now.

Since the siege on Terminal City began I've had to revise my opinions. A lot.

It started when I caught him giving away his share of the morning food rations to Gem. He caught me watching him, surprise clear on my face. "What?" he asked nonchalantly, "I'm not hungry." I might have bought it I hadn't heard his stomach growl. According to Gem, he'd been standing nearby when Doc had told her that she needed to make sure she was getting enough nutrients because she was breastfeeding Eve.

The next thing that caused my opinion to shift was a conversation I overheard. Arrow, an X-5 male, was complaining about how Alec had ignored an opportunity to score some alcohol on the last supply run in order to snag a crateful of school supplies for the younger x series.

After that I started paying closer attention and it wasn't long before I was telling Logan off for calling Alec a screw up.

And then Logan went and got captured by White and Alec did everything in his power to help me get him back, because he knew that Logan was important to me. He even got himself shot, throwing himself in front of Logan when White realized that we were going to succeed in taking him back. Shot and bleeding, he carried Logan to safety.

My impression of Alec changes almost as often as Alec himself does but there are two things now that I couldn't change if I wanted too. The first is that Alec is my mate; even Manticore had known we were made for each other; it had just taken me a little longer to figure it out than most. The second thing was that despite all his attempts at being a smart aleck jerk, deep down he had the heart of a hero.


	5. IJ

**IMPOSTER**

Getting called into Renfro's office was one of those things the X5's held in universal distaste, so no one questioned the grimace on 494's face when he got word that she wanted to see him. But like a good soldier he got up without a word and quickly made his way out of the room. Spotting the two guards that stood outside of her office he gave them a nod in greeting, they were two of his more frequent "customers". Noticing the lack of expression of their faces he felt the first stirring of worry and steeled himself before opening the door.

"X5-494 reporting as ordered, Ma'am!" he snapped out without a drop of personality anywhere to be found as he fell into the at attention position. Nothing here but a robotic little soldier, at least that's what he hoped that she'd believe.

"494," She began, a cold glint in her eyes making the worry he was feeling increase exponentially, "At ease." She said and nodded in approval as his stance widened marginally and his hands were clasped behind his back, even at ease he looked like a soldier. "I have an assignment for you."

The concern that had been causing his gut to ache eased a little. An assignment, he could handle that, _would_ handle it, no matter what. There wasn't a chance in hell he'd risk getting sent back to Psy Ops. He waited for the details, anxious to find out what was expected of him and get the hell out of dodge.

"As I'm sure you know, a recent attack by a group of 09'ers resulted in the destruction of the DNA lab. During the attack, two of the traitors were shot and captured. We brought them back here, one was seriously injured we were attempting to revive 452, when it became clear that our efforts were useless due to the damage her heart had sustained, the second X5-599 sacrificed himself in order to supply us with a working heart for her. She has spent the last months recovering from the heart transplant surgery and being evaluated in Psy Ops and was just clear to return to duty."

He'd heard all of this, for all that they acted like a bunch of stoic soldiers, there was quite an extensive "grapevine" at Manticore. He couldn't help but wonder where this was leading. Was she going to ask him to target the 09'er for "punishment"? Or maybe she wanted him to protect her from any attempts at retribution that the others would attempt?

"Careful genetic evaluation has been conducted and you have been paired with 452 as breeding partners. You are to copulate every night until she becomes pregnant."

It was times like these that he was thankful for the emotionless mask that was drilled into them from the time they could walk. They wanted him to copulate with an 09'er?

"I find it doubtful that she will comply with orders." Renfro continued.

"Ma'am?" he questioned, after all, the girl had just been released from Psy Ops, how was it possible that she'd even considered disobedience?

"It is my belief that 452 has not been fully integrated and that she is playing along in the hopes of finding the opportunity to escape us once again." Renfro was pleased to see the small flash of anger in 494's eyes. He and the other twins had all been punished for the initial escape and he himself had been punished again when it became clear that 493 had suffered from a psychotic break.

"Your resemblance to 493, who she considered to be her brother, should catch her off guard. You are to befriend her, even if this means not completing your mission to breed with her, monitor her progress in making plans to escape, and report back to me daily. We have reason to believe that she has a relationship with Eyes Only."

They all knew who Eyes Only was. Manticore had a vested interest in discovering the identity of the cyber journalist. If 452 really did have a relationship with him, this could be the break they were looking for.

"You are to do your best to discover the identity of Eyes Only. We also suspect that she has a lover on the outside that she is holding out hope of being reunited with. We are interested in discovering who he is as well. We need to find out how many people know what she is so that we can contain the situation. Questions?"

Taking his silence to mean that he understood his mission, she said. "You have your assignment 494, don't fail us again. Dismissed."

"Yes Ma'am!" he replied before turning with all the military precision drilled into him over the years and leaving her office. He had a lot to think about.

OOOOOOOOOO

Entering the mess hall the next morning he immediately spotted a circle of soldiers congregating at one end. They appeared to be taunting someone and when he caught a glimpse of long brown hair he knew it was 452. He considered ignoring the situation. He really didn't want to get involved but his orders were to befriend her and a friend wouldn't let them attack her without stepping in. Placing his tray down on the table, he made is way over to the crowd that the guards and trainers were studiously ignoring.

They'd done similar things to him when the 09'ers had first escaped and later when he'd failed the Berrisford mission. Only the fact that he was one of the best fighters in Manticore had saved him. They'd learned to fear him and later to respect him.

He stepped in front of her; shielding her with his body, challenge glinting in his hazel green eyes and a growl issuing from his throat. Most of the crowd dispersed with only that as encouragement. The few that lingered were some of the better fighters and it was as much about challenging him now as it was about tormenting her.

The guards finally made their way over to break things up. 494 was a favorite among them, always willing to get a hold of contraband and other goods for them and he had more personality than most of the soldiers housed at the facility. They would have let the crowd do what they wanted to an 09'er but they'd stop things from getting too rough for 494 to handle.

As the last of 452's tormentors slunk away, 494 nodded his thanks to the guards. "Come on 452, you can sit with me."

Max was surprised that he'd bothered to stand up for her. After all she'd kicked him into the door the night before and their talk hadn't exactly been friendly. She hesitated for a moment but eventually picked up her tray and followed him. He sat at a table with several females and one other male. Looking around the mess hall she noticed that most of the tables consisted of a similar arrangement.

Noting the look of confusion on 452's face 494 took pity on her. "A few years ago Manticore noticed that as we got older we took on more of the animalistic qualities of the cat DNA they spiked out cocktails with. They used different species of the big cats but for some reason we tend to follow the social structures of lions. One or two males and several females, just like you'd find in a pride in the wild, tend to come together and close ranks. They've made allowances for it. Just like they have with other things. The males all sleep in the barracks still while the females get their own cells. Made it easier to isolate them when they went into heat and now it makes it easier for the breeding pairs, like us, to copulate." He gave her a lecherous grin, which had the others at the table laughing while she just rolled her eyes.

Max nodded to indicate that she understood. "Why did they isolate the females? I would have thought Manticore would jump at the chance to have children to study, we're most fertile when we're in heat after all."

494 nodded, "That's true but it's harder to send soldiers on missions when they're pregnant and even sparring becomes dangerous. It would have caused too many problems. Even now they're careful about who they allow to copulate, they don't want it to interfere with accomplishing mission objectives."

They spend the rest of breakfast in silence, Max lost in thought, the others used to the fact that Manticore discouraged socializing.

OOOOOOOOOO

She named him that night and for the first time he started to think that it might not be that hard to pretend to be her friend. She had a fire that none of the other Manticore females had. But he didn't understand why she wanted out so bad, he'd been out there after he'd been cleared for solo missions. It was dirty and most people were barely scraping by. At least there was plenty of food here, hot water too, and all the walls and ceilings were intact.

He'd gone to Renfro with his report letting her know about 452 telling him her name was Max and the fact that she'd found a way into the basement. He hadn't liked the wicked glint in her eyes but he shook it off and left as fast as his feet could carry him.

Max wasn't at lunch or any of the drills and he felt something, it took awhile to recognize it though, worry. Eventually he asked around with some of the guards that he was friendlier with and found out that she was in Psy Ops. Again. There weren't many things that scared the X5's but Psy Ops was definitely one of them. Having gone through it twice himself he was concerned for her.

He'd seen her when they dragged her back to her cell. She hadn't looked good. One of the guards had noticed him staring and let him know that Renfro wanted to see him.

He'd shown back up at Max's cell in time for her to wake up, fully briefed on his mission. He'd never felt more like an imposter in his life; never during any of his assassination missions had a role been so hard to play.

**JEALOUSY**

It had started with her going into heat. Trapped in Terminal City, surrounded by X5 males, she'd turned to Alec. Everyone already thought they were together, allowing him to claim her while she was in heat had saved her from a whole hell of a lot of trouble but then the heat had passed. She got scared, her feelings for him were stronger than she'd ever realized, so she hide it behind a wall of anger. She'd bitched him out, had punched him, and had kicked him out of her apartment.

She wanted to take it back when she'd seen the hurt in his eyes but she couldn't. She was in love with Logan, she reminded herself sternly, they were only apart because of the virus. And Alec was a playa, taking a different girl home every night, a real tomcat. She gave him crap about it but she knew it was as much a part of his DNA make up as her heat cycles were. She refused to just be another notch on his bedpost.

She kept telling herself that, over and over. She ignored the looks the other females had started giving her and let herself be grateful for the fact that the males were staying away. They might not have respected the relationship she had with Logan but apparently all it took was sleeping with Alec to get them to designate her off limits.

Things with Logan went down hill quickly after she'd slept with Alec. He tried to be understanding at first, telling her that it was heat induced and that he knew she hadn't been in control of her actions but his assurances rang false. He'd always been threatened by Alec and they both knew it. It didn't help matters when he started to hear the rumors about how Max had walked half way through Terminal City, fighting off any and all males that got in her way until she'd gotten to Alec. Jealousy wasn't a good look on Logan, made him petty.

It didn't take long after the siege of Terminal City had ended to find out that jealousy wasn't a good look on her either. After the drama with Kelpy, with Otto and Clemente's help the government had started to make provisions for them. They weren't going to be accepted overnight but it was a start and a bunch of the X5's decided to head down to Crash to celebrate, dragging Max along with them.

She was feeling pretty happy, kickin it at a table with O.C. and some of the others when she looked up and spotted Alec at the bar. He was looking down into the eyes of a busty blonde, just the type of girl he'd always seemed to go for in the past, and smiling that cocky smile that she always had to remind herself that she hated. She didn't remember getting to her feet, didn't remember walking across the bar, pushing people out of the way left and right. Suddenly she was shoving her way between Alec and the blond, her teeth bared in something too feral to call a smile. She must not have fit the dumb blonde stereotype because she got the message almost immediately and cleared out.

Max had turned to Alec, eyes flashing and had slapped him when she saw the grin on his face. "About time you caught on Maxie." He told her, shrugging the slap off like it was nothing.

"Caught on to what?" She growled, feeling dangerously close to losing control.

"That you're my mate." He replied smugly. "You might not have realized what you were doing but when you came to me during your heat, you declared yourself my mate."

It should have scared her, should have had her running for the hills but she found herself with a feeling of satisfaction unlike anything else she'd ever felt. "Shut up Pretty Boy." She said before leaning up to meet him as he leaned down to kiss her. "I'm warning you now though," She said, pulling away, "I ever catch you looking at anyone like that again, you won't stay pretty for long."

He just rolled his eyes and laughed, obviously not the least bit intimidated by her threat. Who'd look at another woman with her around anyway?


	6. KL

DISCLAIMER: Don't own it.

AUTHOR'S NOTE: Ok, I know that K isn't the most original thing I could have come up with but I like it and I hope you do too.

**KISS**

Alec woke up quickly. There was no moment of confusion like ordinaries might experience. He'd been trained as a soldier his whole life after all, and soldiers didn't have the luxury of waking up any other way but instantaneously and aware of their surroundings. He knew that someone had knocked softly on his door. He might be awake, might know what had woken him up but it didn't stop the growl of irritation from issuing from his throat. He _liked_ sleep damn it and someone waking him up on his day off was not something to be taken lightly.

He made his way to the door, not bothering to get dressed. He had every intention of killing whoever was on the other side and going right back to sleep, so it didn't matter in the slightest if they saw him in his boxers.

He threw the door open with an unnecessary amount of force, ready to rip the person on the other side to shreds verbally, since he knew that actually killing them might be over reacting. A little.

Anger fled when he saw that it was Max outside his door. She didn't just stop by to hang out or to chat. She only came when she needed him to watch her back, which meant that there was more than likely a situation. "What's up M," he didn't get to finish saying her name, her lips crashing against his could probably be pinpointed as the reason. He froze for a moment; mind racing frantically to figure out what the hell was behind this completely uncharacteristic move on Max's part. And it was Max, he knew, not Sam, although that would have been plenty weird too. And it wasn't because Max was in heat, there wasn't the smell of pheromones in the air to drive him crazy with lust, not that she needed the help. Logan wasn't around, so this wasn't for his benefit. There was no taste of alcohol in her mouth so he knew she wasn't drunk, so what the hell was going on?

Her nails raked down his back and coherent thought was a thing of the past. He was kissing her back with bruising force. He placed his hands on her waist, just above her hips and lifted her up, forcing her to wrap her legs around his waist. Shoving her up against the wall he ground his erection into her, feeling a flash of pure male satisfaction at the moan it dragged from her. That same moan dragged him back to his senses.

"Max?" He asked, panting for breath as he pulled away from her, "what are you doing?"

Her eyes were unfocused, he could smell her arousal, and her voice when she answered was huskier than usual, quite possibly the sexiest thing he'd ever heard.

"I'm so tired Alec. I'm so sick of being alone, of being numb. I need someone to touch me."

Alec was still confused as hell. This wasn't the Max he knew. She'd never admit those things, at least not to him. She didn't even like him. Most days she barely tolerated him. He let her slid slowly down his body so her feet were on the floor, trying not to groan at the feel of her body pressed tightly against his. Pulling out his cell, he closed his eyes to block out the feel of her hands roaming all over him, he was using his body to keep her in place, afraid she'd run or do something stupid if he let her go.

He called command, tilting his head to hold the phone between his shoulder and his ear. Hands now free, he grabbed Max by the wrists, removing her hands from his belt, which they were struggling to undo and pining them against the wall over her head. Hearing Dix's voice over the line he muttered a quick, "Thank you God!"

"Alec?" the potato headed transgenic questioned.

"Nothing, don't worry about it. Look, I was calling because I need to know, did you notice anything strange about Max when she was there earlier?"

"No, nothing unusual. She was talking to one of the new arrivals for a while but then she left. Why? Is something wrong?"

"New arrival? Who?" He questioned. He was sure that there was a reason for Max's behavior. She was still kissing every part of him that she could reach, it was enough to drive anyone insane but he was trying to do the right thing damn it.

"Uhh, I think she said her name was Mia." Dix replied, obviously confused.

"Mia, of course." He laughed then, a strained, desperate sort of chuckle. "Thanks Dix."

Bringing Max's wrists together, still above her head and pinned to the wall, he switched his grip so that he was holding them one handed. He hung up the phone and tossed it aside in the general direction of the couch.

"Max." He snapped in a tone of voice he'd never used with her, sounding like the CO he'd been before she'd taken Manticore down. He let his eyes close for a second with relief when her eyes snapped up to his, looking focused for the first time since he'd opened the door.

"Alec!" His name came out high pitched and indignant. "What are you doing?" She demanded.

He stepped back, willing his body to calm down. "What am I doing?" he asked incredulously. "Mia put the whammy on you and I'm doing everything I can to keep you from hating me even more than you already do." The last was said with more bitterness than he'd meant to show.

"Mia?" Max asked weakly, sliding along the wall to put more distance between them as she struggled to remember. "Oh god."

She remembered talking to the perky transgenic now. Remembered confessing all of the confusion she'd been feeling lately over her attraction to Alec and the way her feelings for Logan seemed to be fading. She didn't really remember much after that. Her brain finally caught up with what Alec had said. "I don't hate you Alec." She said absently, still struggling to work out exactly what it was Mia had done to her. "I trust you more than anyone else here. And you're one of my best friends."

The look on his face made her do a mental replay and she groaned. She hadn't meant to tell him that. She opened her mouth to say something cutting and snarky to restore their relationship back to its usual balance but what she meant to say and what she actually said were two completely different things.

"In fact I've been attracted to you for a long time. I've been hanging on to the idea of Logan because I don't want to be just another conquest of yours. The truth is, I think I might be in love with you."

Alec was speechless, all he could do was stand there and blink rapidly. Mia had just given him all of his dreams on a platter.

Max, of course, took his silence as rejection. "Oh god. I'm an idiot. I'm going to kill Mia." She spun on her heel, ready to leave and do just that when Alec grabbed her by the arm and dragged her against him, kissing her senseless.

"I love you Max," he said, when he finally pulled away enough to look her in the eyes. "You could never be just another conquest. All those girls were just a way to forget you, the one I couldn't have."

**LAST**

AUTHOR'S NOTE: Spoilers here for the books by Max A. Collins with one notable difference; although the Kelpy thing happened it didn't result in the end of the siege it just resulted in the orders for the military force that was being sent to Terminal City to be rescinded.

**OOOOOOOOOO**

The comet had come, passing overhead with no sign of the Coming that the snake cult had prophesied. They'd thought that they were in the clear for almost a month, that it was just another wacky cult who's beliefs had no basis in reality, then people started to get sick and there was nothing that could be done for them.

Dix and Luke, with Logan's help, had managed to decipher most of the runes on her skin. Sandeman, it seemed, had included the cure the pathogen released by the comet in her blood and after a week of all of the medically inclined transgenic and transhumans working on extracting the antidote they'd finally admitted defeat. There was a catalyst missing and none of them knew what it was.

Another round of frantic work began, this time the ball was back in Dix, Luke, and Logan's court and they desperately tried to unravel the meaning of the runes they'd been unable to translate before. Days passed and hundreds of thousands of ordinaries died

Eventually even Max with her shark DNA succumbed to exhaustion. The next thing she knew she was being dragged out of bed by Joshua and toward the command center, while her big fella was happily telling her that they had found the key and that they knew what the runes meant. The answer, it turned out, was surprisingly simple. The missing catalyst was in Alec's blood.

That's when things took a turn for the worse. Alec had disappeared and no one could find him. They all felt things start to spin out of control and waited for the other shoe to drop.

**OOOOOOOOOO**

Alec had been missing for three days and all of Terminal City was on edge especially Max. They were all walking on eggshells around her after seeing the way she'd blown up at Logan when he suggested in a fit of annoyance that Alec had just snuck out of the city to get drunk and laid. It didn't matter if Logan wasn't well liked, none of them would have wanted to be in his shoes by the time Max was done with him.

All of their efforts to find him had come up empty and more people were dying all the time. They'd even lost a few of their own kind. They were resistant for the most part but some of the earlier series weren't as resistant. Max no longer knew what to think. White was dead so she knew that he didn't have Alec. Lydecker was on their side again, at least for the moment. None of their known enemies, it seemed, could have been responsible for Alec's disappearance and Max refused to believe that he'd left of his own accord.

Ever since the incident at Jam Pony, Alec, Mole, and Joshua had been right by her side, working together every step of the way to do what it took to keep their people safe. Alec was still self-involved and egotistical and cocky but he was also one of the people she trusted most and was quickly becoming one of her best friends, he wouldn't have abandoned her…them.

She and Mole were pouring over all of the reports the people they had in the field were sending in when one of the X7's came blurring into Command holding an envelope in hand.

"Shade sent me Ma'am," The small girl said quickly, "He found this when he was patrolling the perimeter, he said you need to look at it right away."

Max could feel the blood drain from her face, she knew that she wasn't going to like what she found in there even as she took the envelope the child was holding out to her. She dumped the contents out onto the table and felt bile rise into her throat as the pictures were revealed. She knew at a glance that Alec was dead, she stopped breathing, and she couldn't look away.

Mole was the one that spotted the small white paper with carefully typed words and scooped it up. What he read made him pull the cigar out of his mouth and drop it on the floor. He ground it under his heel before looking up at Max.

"They took him. The Ordinaries. They decided that we must have been the cause of the virus, they killed him trying to get information about the cure out of him." He told her, his voice completely devoid of emotion. He had come to consider Alec a brother, although he would never admit it, and the X5's death hit him hard.

Max laughed a humorless laugh. "They'll never believe that they killed their last hope for survival." She said, before her knees when weak and she sank back into a chair. "Looks like Ames White and the Familiars win after all."

**OOOOOOOOOO**

Halfway across town in a rundown warehouse, Alec, X5-494 screamed in agony as his captors started another round of torture. He didn't know how much longer he was going to last.


	7. MN

DISCLAIMER: Its not mine

AUTHOR'S NOTE: I'm not happy with Name but after struggling with it all day I've decided to just post it. . Sorry if it sucks.

**MIND**

Alec stood beside Max's grave marker long after everyone else, even Joshua and O.C., had sought shelter from the freezing Seattle rain. He'd loved her and he'd never actually said the words out loud to her and now he'd never get the chance.

It was White. Wasn't it always? White had killed Annie. White had fed the hysteria that caused a mob to kill Biggs. In the end it was always White.

He'd managed to grab Maxie right out from under their noses. They'd finally found Sandeman and had worked with him to develop a cure to the pathogen the comet would release using Max's blood. She'd been heavily guarded until then, submitting to round the clock escort only because she knew that the ordinaries would die if something happened to her. She'd submitted to it until the moment Sandeman declared the cure a success.

Max, by nature, was a loner. She had few close friends and valued her time alone. Alec had known what a strain it had been for her to always have people with her. None of them had been surprised when she'd taken off for her high place. No one had objected because it was within Terminal City. She should have been safe. She wasn't.

Somehow White had gotten her and after days of frantic searching Logan had called in, pale and shaking and shown them all a video recorded by a hoverdrone. They watched helplessly as White shot a badly beaten Max in the head before turning the gun on the drone. They hadn't recovered her body, though they'd tried like hell. All of the residents of Terminal City were cremated, not just because there was no where to bury them but because none of them wanted to take the chance that they'd be dug up and experimented on even in death.

Max's death had hit them all hard. Even Mole, as stoic as them come, had shed a tear as he watched the footage Logan had found. Some good had come of it though. It had enraged the transgenics and without Max there to temper them, they had become what Manticore had intended them to be. They had gone after the snake cult and had left nothing but blood and death in their wake.

The fall out from their crusade might have been enough to convince the government to end them but the comet had come, the people had started to fall ill, and only Max's cure had been able to save them. When Sandeman stepped forward and finally told the world about the cult, the pathogen, and Max, public opinion had largely turned in their favor. There would always be those that didn't hold anything but hatred and contempt for them.

Their war with the familiars, the distribution of the cure, and their fight for acceptance had taken precedence, now almost seven months after her death, they had finally been able to lay Max to rest, symbolically at least.

Alec didn't know when he'd started to cry, tears had mingled with rain and it was only when he'd tasted salt on his lips that he'd realized. He wasn't ashamed of his tears. He didn't care that soldiers didn't cry. He had lost Max, the only woman he would ever want as his mate, his best friend.

_"Alec…"_

He heard her voice, his head jerked up and he looked around wildly. It had been quiet, barely above a whisper, but he had heard it. He had heard Max. He could have sworn he'd heard Max. Realizing what he was thinking, he laughed and the sound held no humor at all. Max was dead and he was losing his mind. Just like Ben.

"_Alec…please…" her voice called again._

She was begging him and she sounded so tired. He shook his head, tried to push the thought that he could hear her away. He didn't want to go crazy.

"_Alec I'm not dead…you have to find me, I can't hold on much longer."_

**OOOOOOOOOO**

Alec had left Terminal City in a hurry. He hadn't told any of them where he was going, he just left. He'd stopped long enough to tell Mole he was in charge and to hug Joshua and then he was gone. That had been almost a year ago.

They had all known how he felt about Max. The only people that were blind to it had been Max and Alec themselves. When he left most of them didn't hold on to much hope that he'd ever come back. The city had grieved for both of their leaders. It had hit Joshua and Mole hardest of all, because those two, more than anyone else, wondered if Alec could live without Max.

Which is why walking into the command center and seeing him sitting on Mole's desk came as such a shock. No one knew what to say and he was staring off into space with such a faraway look they were almost afraid to speak.

Joshua was the one that broke the silence. "Alec…?" He questioned softly.

It was like watching Alec come alive. His head came up slowly. His eyes found Joshua and bit-by-bit they focused on him until they were lit from within. They sparkled with mischief and he looked like the old Alec, the one they'd known before Max had died.

"Hey big fella." He replied with a grin, like he'd never been gone, like no time had passed.

"Where've you been Princess?" Mole asked, finally finding his voice, only the way his teeth were clamped down on his cigar indicated that he was upset.

"Oh, you know, here and there. Had to go rescue Max."

Every eye in the room was on him then and every one of them was sure that he'd snapped like his twin had, that the insanity had been genetic after all. He'd shocked them speechless again.

He could see the way that they were staring at him in horror. He knew what they were thinking. Just then he heard her voice echo through his head and he smiled, the faraway look they'd found him wearing slipped back into place. He closed his eyes, and a small smile tugged up the corners of his lips. He looked like a man in love.

"She's coming. She says she's ready to come home." He told them.

Joshua was shaking his head. "No Alec. Little fella is gone. We saw her die." He was sad; his worst fear, that he'd lost his medium fella, was coming true, just not the way he'd expected. He wasn't losing him to death; he was losing him to a disease in his mind.

Alec's eyes opened again and it was the same sort of slow awakening as before. "We saw what White wanted us to see." He said it gleefully, like a child with an amazing secret.

His head tilted to the side, as though he was listening to something that none of them could hear and Joshua reached out and shook him, trying to draw him back from the brink of insanity. "Little fella gone, Alec."

"No, I found her. I saved her. I finally told her that I love her." He confided with a smile, his head still cocked to the side, explaining but clearly distracted by what was going on in his own head. "It took time. It took a long time. She had to heal; she had to learn how to control it. But she's back, she's ready to be home."

Looks passed between transgenics and transhumans that were helpless and fearful, it was worse than they'd feared and then the impossible happened and it was like the world moved in slow motion for all of them.

The door to command opened and Max came walking in. She had scars. And it was almost impossible for a transgenic to be hurt badly enough to scar. And she walked with a limp. But it was her and it looked like Alec wasn't crazy after all. They all heard her voice whisper through their minds as she said, _"I've missed you." _

**NAME**

Max had never really been good at coming up with names. She'd chosen her own. She'd been the one to decide that her unit needed names. Zack had fought the idea at first; it was he said, an act of insubordination. But she'd picked the name Max and whenever they were alone she wouldn't answer to anything else. It wasn't long before they all had names; Zack had never been able to deny her anything.

She'd chosen Alec's name too but he had so much personality that he'd practically named himself. She still laughed every time she pictured him answering to her second choice, Dick.

But other than those two names, her choices had been…well; bad was one way to put it. Fixit? Bullet? Zero? These weren't good names, even if they had fit at the time. She wouldn't have wanted to get stuck with them if she'd been in those kid's shoes.

So when she'd found out that she was pregnant, she hadn't been afraid of not being a good mother, everyone told her it was instinctual. She'd been afraid of saddling her kid with a name that would make them grow up to hate her.

She'd poured over the book of baby names that Logan had bought for her for hours. She'd tested each name out loud and had given serious thought to the meaning behind the names that she'd liked. She'd picked two that she'd been relatively sure wouldn't be too embarrassing but as she laid on the hospital bed in Terminal City's med bay, the fear had come rushing back in. What if she picked a name and the other kids made fun of her child for it?

The door flew open and she let out a gasp of surprise but seeing who it was her whole face lit up. There was Alec, looking even more terrified than she felt. He was breathing hard and looked a little pale, she knew he'd been out on a supply run when they called to tell him that she was in labor. From the looks of things he hadn't bothered to wait for them to drive back but had blurred the whole way instead. She started to giggle at the image but a particularly vicious contraction stole her breath.

Alec rushed to her side and grabbed her hand and suddenly she knew it didn't matter what they named their child. Anyone that made fun of them wouldn't live to regret it.


	8. OP

DISCLAIMER: I know I know. It's not mine. But they're all so pretty I can't help but want to play with them.

AUTHOR'S NOTE: I got some bad news recently and it's got me a little down. It's shows in these two stories. You've been warned.

**OPEN**

A month after the siege on Terminal City began Alec finally told Max the whole story behind his relationship with Rachel. She'd been quiet for a long time, her eyes unfocused, lost in thought. She knew that he was, whether he knew it or not, waiting for her to pass judgment. He'd gotten to say his goodbyes but he still needed absolution. She put herself in Rachel's shoes, young and innocent, although far more worldly than Alec had been in some ways, betrayed, injured…would she have forgiven him?

"She would have forgiven you." Max said firmly, leaving no doubt that she believed it wholeheartedly. "You loved her enough to risk telling her the truth to try and save her. It might have taken awhile but she would have forgiven you." She stood up then and walked away, knowing that he would need some time alone. Manticore hadn't exactly bred them to be comfortable with chick flick moments.

Things changed between then after that, the trust that they had for each other strengthened and their somewhat tentative friendship switched into full blown best friend status. They worked closely together and as more and more transgenics poured into Terminal City they became roommates. They were pretty much inseparable, it was rare to see one without the other. They still fought; Alec could prick Max's temper faster than anyone else. He once told Mole that he couldn't help himself, it was too easy to get her riled. Plus, he said, she looked hot when she was pissed. Mole had rolled his eyes and muttered something about Alec trying too hard to protect his reputation.

Even though Max had told Logan that her relationship with Alec was a lie after they held hands at the flag raising, it was killing him to see them together. They were unbearably close, finishing each other's sentences, laughing at private jokes that no one else understood. He'd overheard O.C. and Joshua talking about them one day and Cindy's comment that she'd never seen Max so comfortable and open with anyone before damn near crushed him. It hurt to watch them, Alec slinging his arm companionably around her shoulders, Max resting her forehead against his chest when they'd lost one of their own to White and his merry band of psychos. And he still couldn't touch her without dying a sudden and painful death.

He'd suspected it was over the night that she'd cut their video conference call short because Alec had let out a quiet sigh of boredom. Alec hadn't even needed to complain, just sigh, and Max had grinned and said goodbye to him. "Promised Alec we'd watch a movie." She said by way of explanation. Max, who didn't even own a television, was rushing off to watch a movie with Alec, the screw up.

He began to work harder to find the cure after that, convinced that if he didn't find it soon he would lose her to Alec forever.

Logan wasn't alone in his frustrations either. Countless X5 females were right there with him. After the Berrisford mission had landed him in Psy Ops 494 had been different. No longer shy, he'd been quite the ladies man, his skills and good looks making him highly desirable as a mate. But these days he spent all his time with Max and even when he was with one of them, he'd drop them in a heartbeat if Max even hinted that she wanted to spend time with him. She wasn't even his mate!

The X5 males didn't have the same complaints. Max was hot, sure. She was their leader, a strong Alpha, but all the males knew she was claimed. Anyone dumb enough to look at her with interest found himself challenged to a "friendly" bout of sparring with Alec. They inevitably limped painfully away from the mat and didn't look her way again.

Then came the day that Logan did find the cure. He called Max and she was as excited as he was and he felt hopeful for the first time in ages. He rushed through the tunnel vial in hand, bursting into command as Max finished telling Alec the good news. The transgenic's eyes were strangely bright and the smirk on his face looked brittle but Max didn't see it. She just sat down and allowed Logan to inject her with the cure.

They sat and waited for it to take affect and Max never noticed how the emotion was slowly leeching from Alec's face but Logan did and he felt like crowing in triumph.

They drew Max's blood to confirm that the virus had been neutralized and she didn't notice how Alec's relaxed posture was becoming more ridged until he was practically standing at attention.

She didn't see the anguish on his face when Logan loudly announced them cured. She didn't see the way his hazel green eyes glinted with unshed tears as Logan kissed her.

But she did notice the slump of his shoulders as he started to walk out of command and it opened her eyes to what had been in front of her all along. She pushed Logan away with a hastily muttered apology and ran after Alec. She noticed the hope that made his face light up.

No one noticed the light of hope go out on Logan's face. No one noticed as he turned and slowly walked back the way he'd come. No one noticed his pain but Asha. Asha who was waiting on the other end of the tunnel, who like Alec, had been waiting all along.

**PROMISE**

She could still remember the day he promised that he'd never willingly leave her. The comet had come and before a cure could be found O.C. and Normal were dead. Logan died too, for him the cure had just come too late. His body had been laid to waste by the virus and even cured he'd been to sapped of strength to survive.

Alec had found her lying on his bed crying and he'd known then that he and Joshua were all that she had left. He'd curled himself around her and they'd slept for the first time in over a week.

Joshua had been the one to find them two days later. Even though they were awake neither had moved, they just held on to each other and mourned together.

A year later they were married. Alec thought it was a stupid custom that was for ordinaries but Max wanted it and he would have given her anything. Alec had worked hard to get her wedding gift there on time. He'd found all of her remaining sisters and brothers. Syl, Jondy, Jace, Krit, Zane. Even Zack, memories newly restored. He wanted her to know that he loved her but he wasn't all she had.

When he died, he wasn't breaking his promise. He'd taken a bullet meant for her but he'd fought like hell to live. He'd shown her that he wasn't all she had and then he proved that for him, she was all that mattered.

Losing him had nearly killed her. It was Joshua that brought her back. He'd carried her to his apartment when she'd been too weak with grief to walk and he'd shown her his latest painting. It showed her in Alec's arms, the day he'd made the promise. Her eyes filled with tears and she remembered that she'd given him a promise too. She'd sworn she wouldn't give up. She stood up then and dashed the tears away roughly with the back of her hand. With one last look at the painting she walked away, she had a nation to run and a family to protect.

Joshua watched her go with a sad smile. He'd known about their promises, Alec had told him. He'd made a promise too, to always protect Max. He glanced at his painting again. To him Alec looked like a dragon curled around its precious horde. He'd thought about calling it "His Greatest Treasure" but now he knew that wasn't the right name. In the end it was titled, "The Promise."


	9. QR

Quarantine

**DISCLAIMER: Don't own it so don't sue me. Please.**

**Author's Note: My computer lost its mind. No seriously, the stupid thing went crazy and it's taking my husband forever to fix it. . So I had to start this from scratch on my laptop, how lame is that? I don't have any of my notes either so lets just keep our fingers crossed shall we? ;) Sorry it took so long to get this done.**

**Quarantine**

Six years ago the transgenics finally achieved status as US citizens. They had to register with homeland security and the more human looking among them had to carry an id card at all time stating what they were but they were granted most of the same rights other Americans had and it was all thanks to the Familiars.

When "the Coming" had come, nothing had happened. It looked like the doomsday prophecy the snake cult had subscribed too had been nothing but hot air. Most of the transgenics had assumed that they'd be a good little cult and vanish back into the woodwork but it hadn't happened. The nutty bastards had gone truly crazy and had declared war on the ordinaries.

Some of the transgenics had wanted to ignore the fighting; heavy losses on both sides could only be to their benefit. Max, Joshua, Alec, and surprisingly Mole, had argued that they should help the ordinaries and in the end they'd gone to war beside the humans. It had been a long and bloody fight but in the end they'd won, barely. Fighting and dying beside the humans had won them something that all the good PR in the world probably wouldn't have. It earned them acceptance.

.¸¸.·´¨»«´¨·. ¸¸.

Max woke to the sound of someone pounding on her door. She didn't come awake as fast as she used too. Living with Logan had made her soft, she thought, a bit disgruntled. The personal security that he'd hired combined with the fact that she was no longer being hunted had made it easy to let down her guard but she was still a soldier and was completely alert and on her feet faster than many would have been. Reaching under her pillow she grabbed the gun that she kept there. She still hated the damn things but if the war with the Familiars had taught her anything, it was that they were a necessary evil. Then she realized that if someone had fought their way past all the security and gotten far enough to bang on the door, they could have broken in by now. She probably wasn't in danger. She lost some of the tension she was feeling but she kept the gun gripped loosely in her hand pointed at the ground as she made her way into the front room.

A glance back over her shoulder at Logan's side of the bed showed it empty. Looked like he hadn't been to bed yet that night. Probably fell asleep at the computer again, she thought with a gentle smile of amusement.

A glance through the peephole showed one of the last people she'd ever expected to see again; Alec. He'd been invaluable in the war, fighting fiercely beside her; he had always had her back. Their friendship had deepened but once things had settled back down, he'd taken off for parts unknown with no indication that he'd ever be back. She'd heard from him a few months later when a package arrived on Logan's doorstep with her name on it. It held the cure and a note.

_Hey Maxie,_

_Found this in my travels and thought of you. Hope you enjoy it._

_Always,_

_Alec_

A few months after that she'd gotten another package with the key to his apartment in it and necklace with a small gold pendant and another note.

_Maxie,_

_Don't think I'll be back anytime soon. Tell Dix to let someone take over my place if anyone wants it. A guy gave this to me the other day; it's a St. Michael's medallion. He's supposed to be the patron saint of warriors of or something. Not much for jewelry myself, maybe you can wear it. Or hock it. Whatever._

_Always,_

_Alec_

That had been five years ago and as far as she knew, no one had seen or heard from him since. She reached up and touched the necklace. She never took it off, much to Logan's irritation. He'd tried to give her more expensive necklaces but she never wore them. It was one of the few bones of contention between them. She'd seen the way that his face had tightened when his family had noticed the necklace and the dismissive way he'd said it was a memento from her family had been enough to make her blood boil. He seemed to have guessed that her feeling for Alec had moved beyond friendship and he hated it.

Realizing that she'd gotten lost in thought she reached out and made quick work of the locks on the door before throwing it open. She gasped in surprise when Alec pushed past her and into the loft, his eyes narrowed as he looked around the room, nodding in approval when he spotted the gun in her hand.

"You need to pack a bag Maxie. We gotta go." He said abruptly.

"Go? Go where? What's going on?" She'd learned to trust him during the war and even as she questioned him she was turning on her heel and striding towards the bedroom. She grabbed a bag out of the closet, already filled with most of the essentials.

"About a month ago, I got a call from Dix. A bunch of the anomalies had disappeared. When the first few went missing, no one thought much of it." He started, even as he saw the footlocker at the bottom of her closet where she'd kept her weapons during the war. He dragged it out and threw it open, going through it, pocketing spare ammo and one of the larger knives. He knew he didn't have to explain why no one had questioned the transhumans disappearing; it had become clear after the war that all of them, X-series and transhumans alike, were restless. Having spent their whole lives in cells in the basement or confined to the base unless they were on maneuvers a lot of the Manticore alums had gotten cases of wanderlust.

"A week ago Luke disappeared." He continued, watching as Max's head snapped up. Luke and Dix were good friends and if Luke had decided to take off Dix would have been with him every step of the way. "He started asking around and did some digging. Someone out there is snatching us up. From what he found out, they were approaching people and telling them that there was virus that had been targeted to transgenics."

"Like that deal White had going with Cyril?" Max questioned grimly, taking a painting off the wall and opening the safe behind it, pulling bundles of cash, a couple of fake id's and passports she had stashed in there out.

"Exactly. You'd told everyone about it back in T.C. so at first they didn't question it when they were told the CDC was rounding them up to put them under quarantine but when they went after Mole, he didn't want to go." His voice had gone expressionless and Max knew what that meant; Mole was dead. She closed her eyes for a short second, allowing herself to mourn briefly before pushing her emotions aside and continuing to get ready.

"They tried to force him to go, he fought back. They didn't tranq him after he landed a hit, they didn't try to subdue him, they just terminated him. They didn't realize that Dix had been tracking the transhumans to find out what was going on. He caught the whole thing on tape." Max grabbed a box from under the bed and pushed it over to Alec who opened it and began pulling out MRE's and stuffing them into his own backpack. He suddenly smirked and when Max caught it out of the corner of her eye and turned to quirk an eyebrow at him he shrugged before explaining.

"You knew I'd be coming. You've got everything you need right here, I don't have to remind you of anything or even ask where anything is. We still work well together." She nodded her understanding before stepping into the closet and pulling the door mostly closed so she could change out of her pajamas. "Last week, I had a dream." She didn't bother to explain more than that. Her fuzzy premonitions had saved them more than once during the war and they'd both learned to trust them. She'd known that she was going to need these things, she didn't know why but she didn't question it, she'd just gathered it all together without a word to Logan.

As though conjured by her thoughts she heard him coming down the hall just as she stepped out of the closet. He was back in the wheel chair. He'd gotten transfusions from some of the transgenics for awhile that had allowed him to keep walking but then the war started and they all knew that the blood could be put to better uses. After they'd found the cure, Max had given Logan a transfusion but it hadn't worked. Neither had the one from Joshua. For whatever reason, their stem cells no longer had the same effect.

"Max?" Logan said making her name into a question, looking shocked to see her standing there in her riding leathers. The surprise on his face morphed into something more like anger, or jealousy, or perhaps both when he spotted Alec sitting on the bed repacking his backpack. He'd decided that the MRE's made it too bulky when he'd just stuffed them in. The younger man didn't even bother to look up, only acknowledging Logan with one quick jerk of his head.

Max bent down and grabbed the painting she'd taken off the wall to get to the safe, replacing it before she turned to answer her boyfriend. She and Logan had never married, not for lack of asking on his part, although she'd never given him a reason for her refusal, they'd both known her feelings for Alec were the cause.

"Got some family stuff to take care of." She told him, tucking her gun behind her into the waistband of her pants before pulling her jacket down to cover it. Alec happened to glance up just in time to catch the total lack of surprise on Logan's face and was on his feet in an instance, a primal growl making his chest rumble.

Max turned sharply and the look of rage on Alec's face put her on edge. It took only second to deduce what had pissed him off and she rounded on Logan, turning so fast that her long hair was still swirling over her shoulder when she let loose a growl of her own. "You knew? You knew that someone was after my family, that they were disappearing, and you said nothing?"

Something about the war had released a side of the transgenics that no one had seen before. They all knew that they had animal DNA in their cocktails but other than the side effects Manticore had wanted like speed and improved strength and the females going into heat they'd never really seen many other animalistic qualities in the X5's. The war changed that. Some of them had become almost feral while others had become highly territorial, some had started to follow a sort of pack structure with some clearly being alpha and some being beta, some had even taken "mates". They'd all thought it was strange but since it was something they could largely control, they'd been forced to accept it and move on, there wasn't time to dwell on it when they were busy bleeding and dying.

Max and Alec had never truly shown that side to Logan until that moment and for the first time since he'd met Max he was honestly afraid of her. The two of them began to stalk towards him and it was like watching jungle cats stalk their prey. He rolled back a few feet but suddenly remembering that he'd read that cats were excited by the chase stopped him. "I…"

Max suddenly put her arm straight out at her side, blocking Alec from moving any further forward and the growl that he directed at her was…menacing. A quick glance in his direction, all the anger she felt shining in her chocolate brown eyes, was enough to make him smirk and reign in his temper. She just shook her head and turned back to her soon to be ex boyfriend. "I told you Logan." She said suddenly realizing that her own voice had never sounded so low and threatening, "I told you that if you ever kept anything involving my family from me again, I would walk out the door and never look back."

Not long after the siege on Terminal City had begun, Logan had told Max that he'd known her brother Seth and had gotten him killed before he and Max had ever met. It had sent Max into a tailspin, it had almost been the end of their "not like that" relationship but O.C. and Alec had managed to convince her to forgive him. She'd made it very clear then that it had better be the only time he withheld information about the people important to her and here he was doing it again on what was clearly a much larger scale. Transgenics had never rated high on his list of priorities. His concern had always been for the downtrodden but only those of the "human" persuasion.

Max smiled, if an expression so bitter and hurt could really be called a smile. "You want to know why I never married you? Well there it is. You don't want me Logan. You want some pretty young thing that's human and hangs on your every word. The only reason you decided you were in love with me is because I could help you fulfill your agenda. It took me a long time to realize it but you never saw the real me. I may have hid some of myself from you but you refused to see the parts of me I did show you. You've got it in your head that my family isn't human and that I'm nothing like them. You're wrong. I'm just like them, except they could all see through you and it took me a lot longer to open my eyes. We're done. I'll have O.C. come by for the rest of my things. I don't ever want to see you again."

She noticed the shocked expression on Alec's face and simply shrugged one shoulder. "You ready to go?" she asked moving toward to door without another glance in Logan's direction, "Sounds like we've got some family to save." She didn't see the hope that made Alec's hazel eyes start to sparkle or the soft smile that curled up the corners of his generous lips. Logan saw it though and was glad that neither of the transgenics was looking his way. They might have seen the rage and promise of revenge that burned brightly in his eyes. It was the sort of look Alec might have killed him then and there for with Manticore's lessons about never leaving an enemy at your back echoing through his head. But they weren't looking and even as they walked out of the apartment, Logan was planning his next move.

**RUNE**

Max walks into the room and her world suddenly slows to a crawl, like she's in a movie and someone's just thrown the scene into slow motion. There'd been a smile on her lips and a twinkle in her eye and in a heartbeat its all darkness and pain because there's Alec on their bed and he's not alone. The air stinks of sex, thick and heavy it makes her want to claw at her throat because it is just the smell of sex, there's not a hint of pheromones in the mix, and that means that the two writhing figures in the bed hwere in control of their actions.

The other woman's moan of pleasure hits her like a stinging slap to the face and it drags a guttural whimper out of her. Alec's head flies up, his eyes find her and he pales, guilt making his face look hollowed out and sickly. .

He's scrambling to his feet, the woman on the bed murmuring in protest and Max is backing away. If she were stronger she'd be pissed, she thinks, but she's not and her eyes are too full of tears to carry the heat of anger. Max laughs, a bitter and caustic sound that has nothing to do with humor and dashes the tears away so she can take a good long look at Alec's new plaything.

Rune, that's her name, Max realizes. She'd only arrived in Terminal City a couple of days ago; damn the girl works fast. Or maybe Alec does. He's reaching out to her now, saying something but she can't make out the words, the sound of her heart shattering is just too loud. She backs away again, shaking off his hand from her arm, ready to beat a hasty retreat to the door.

"Max…" He says, the desperation in his voice unmistakable, so naked and raw it breaks through her stupor. "Please Max…" he's begging her to understand but neither of them know just what it is he wants her to get. She keeps walking toward the door and he knows that if she leaves the room she'll be gone from his life forever. "I love you!" he yells, hit by the sudden realization that he does and that nothing is worth losing her over. Fear starts tearing at his gut with sharp claws. The words work because she stops moving forward but doesn't bother to turn around to face him. Her back is painfully straight and her gaze is blank as she stares at the wall.

"I love you." He tells her again, quieter this time, but with more emotion as the truth of it fills him with wonder.

Hearing him say the words was too little, too late but it still makes something tighten in her chest. She remembers that day at Jam Pony when O.C. accused Alec of telling Marina that he loved her only to cat around with Little Suki a few days later. He'd said it wasn't true then, that the words were a cheap ploy. She'd grown to know him well enough to know that what he really meant was that he wouldn't cheapen Rachel's memory by saying them to another woman unless he meant them.

"I love you too." She finally replies but what she means, what Alec hears, is goodbye.

He closes his eyes as the words hit him like a physical blow. The pain too much to take in that moment, it makes him rock back on his heels. By the time he opens his eyes again she's gone and all he's left with is her fading scent mixed with the smell of sex and betrayal.


	10. ST

DISCLAIMER: None of the characters or locations belong to me. I'm not making any profit from this. I just like to play in their world from time to time.

AUTHOR'S NOTE: Typing on the laptop is a pain but the ideas kept coming, so here's another chapter. :) For those of you that asked, yes, I'll probably continue Quarantine. I need to finish this story and the Wooing of Max. I've got a couple of other stories that I'm planning on writing as well, some continuations of shorts in this alphabet set and a few others. :) Just keep an eye out. I'll get to it as soon as I can.

**SUNDAY**

Alec woke up to the quiet sound of laughter, a grin tugging up the corners of his mouth before he'd even identified the source. Given the givens it was a great way to wake up he decided, especially once he realized that it was Max that was laughing. Maxie didn't smile enough anymore, let alone laugh. It was like she took the whole weight of the world on her shoulders and it was dragging her down more every day. During siege he and Joshua had gone out of their way to show her that she wasn't alone in all of this, that they were there to help her and they'd do what they could to take some of the burden of leadership from her but Max being Max tended to dwell too much and over think things. All brooding and no play made Max an even crankier girl than usual. And that was saying something.

Two weeks ago she'd shown up at his apartment in Terminal City in tears, another close call with Logan and the touch of death had sent her into a tailspin, the result of which was her realizing that the two of them would never have the happily ever after she'd been dreaming of. She hadn't smiled since that day, it'd been longer still since he'd heard her laugh, really laugh. It wasn't easy to see Maxie, the hard ass, take no prisoners, spitfire that he loved to antagonize break down like that. If he hadn't already been in love with her, the fact that she'd been willing to let him see her so vulnerable probably would have been enough to send him over the edge.

His grin grew when he heard her laugh again and even though he was still tired, because not all of them had shark DNA and he liked his sleep dang it, he climbed out of bed. Pausing to drag on a loose pair of pants, he let out a chuckle of his own as he remembered the first time he'd wandered out of his bedroom and into the kitchen naked, intent on getting a drink, to find Max had let herself in in a moment of boredom to watch his television. She'd gone on and on about how her eyes were going to bleed until he pointed out that if she was going to do a little B&E at his place she should have been prepared for anything. His comment that there were plenty of women willing to pay good money for the show she'd just gotten for free had earned him a couch cushion to the head and an exaggerated eye roll from Max. She'd started showing up more often and he'd started to remember not to parade around naked, it'd been an unspoken agreement that had benefited their friendship.

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Max slapped a hand over her mouth to stifle another giggle when she heard Alec start to stir. She was in a great mood, now that she come to some decisions about how she was going to live her life. She opened the sack of goodies she'd brought with her and began to stow them away in his kitchen, pausing only when she heard his door open. Looking up, the sight of him made her mouth go dry. Loose black sweat pants hung low on his hips as he raised a hand to scratch absentmindedly at his bare chest, his light brown hair was tousled from sleep and his green gold eyes were heavy lidded but he looked content and happy to see her.

"Whatcha doin' Maxie?" He questioned, flopping down on the couch to watch her. The fact that she winked at him and didn't tell him off for calling her Maxie warmed him from the inside out.

"I lost power at my place," she said opening his freezer and tossing a couple of things inside. "O.C. got a bunch of stuff from the market yesterday for me and I don't want it to go bad. You don't mind do you?"

He shook his head, crooked smile and sparkling eyes, speaking for him.

The last of her things stowed away she came over to sit on the couch next to him, curling her legs under her. His arm came up and pulled her close, tucking her into his side. They both sighed, taking comfort in the feel of each other and the warmth of their combined body heat. Alec lifted his other arm and pointed the remote at the television, clicking through the channels until her gentle hum of approval stopped him. He put the remote down and closed his eyes, knowing that the program would keep Max entertained long enough for him to grab some more shut eye. He fell back asleep pretty quickly and Max was happy to stay leaned against him.

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Alec woke up sometime later, disappointed to realize that Max wasn't still curled up beside him. A deep breath told him that she was still in the apartment though and a rustling noise from the kitchen told him where. Sitting up he scrubbed the sleep from his eyes and climbed to his feet.

"Do you know what today is Alec?" He heard Max call from the kitchen.

He thought about it for a minute. Wasn't a holiday, or someone's birthday, so he was guessing that it wasn't the date that mattered. "Uhh...Sunday?" he offer tentatively as a reply.

"Yes, yes it is my friend." She replied playfully. "And do you know what it is that you should always eat on Sundays?"

"Uhh...No, can't say that I do." Maybe it was the fact that he wasn't fully awake but she didn't seem to be making much sense at the moment and she was acting a little weird. A lot weird, he corrected himself when she started to giggle.

"On Sunday, we should eat..." She paused for dramatic effect as she came skipping out of the kitchen, large bowl in hand with two spoons, "Sundaes!"

"Sundays?" Okay, he was definitely confused. Anytime now would be a good time for that Manticore boosted IQ to kick in. What the hell was a Sunday? Didn't sound like food to him.

Max wrapped her fingers around his wrist and dropped down onto the couch, yanking him down with her. Glancing inside the bowl she held, he saw that it was full of vanilla ice cream, drizzled with chocolate and caramel syrup, and what looked like toasted pecans.

"A Sunday?" He questioned again, with more enthusiasm this time, because lets be honest, the damn thing looked delicious.

"Sundae." She told him happily, spelling it out, before handing him a spoon and digging in.

Her eyes closed with the first bite and her nose crinkled with delight as she let out a moan of pure pleasure. The sound went straight to his groin and he shifted in what he hoped was a subtle manner, hoping he could hide his reaction well enough to avoid embarrassing her. Or pissing her off. He loaded up his spoon, took a bite and found himself unintentionally copying her reaction. He didn't see the way her eyes flew open or the way her gaze heated. His eyes did open in time to see her duck her head and blush.

"Yum?" he said.

All Max could do was nod but if someone had asked her what it was that was yummy she would have been hard pressed to chose between Alec and the ice cream. She loved how comfortable they'd become with each other. They were able to sit there, side by side, without saying a word, without feeling the least bit uncomfortable. She'd never had that with anyone before, she realized, and it made her smile.

"What?" he questioned around his latest bite, "I got something on my face?"

Max started to shake her head when she realized that he did indeed have a small smudge of caramel on the corner of his mouth.

A wicked gleam made Max's eyes start to sparkle and Alec suddenly felt very nervous. In the days before the siege, a look like that would have been followed by him letting Max kick his ass until it hurt to move. His shock, when she leaned forward and licked the sauce away in one slow sensual move, was therefore understandable.

He swallowed audibly and was about to question her when she leaned even closer into him and kissed him. Hesitation, shock, and how to breath, were all forgotten. He felt the exact moment that she began to doubt herself and he took the bowl of ice cream out of her hands and set it on the coffee table before reaching out and gently cupping her face. "Max..." he breathed in wonder before taking control of the kiss.

She felt her toes start to curl with pleasure. She'd been wanting this for longer than she'd ever admit to anyone. Since he'd walked into her cell at Manticore and told her they'd been paired off. She kicked him away even as a small part of her had been screaming "Hallelujah!" and begging her to pull him closer. She'd fought like hell not to feel it, the attraction to him, because of Logan and her loyalty to him, because of Ben and her guilt, but it had always been there. As time passed and he proved himself to be a good guy and a great friend it had been harder and harder to deny. She felt a little queasy as she started to question the wisdom of giving in to her desires. What if she didn't mean anything to him, could she handle being just another notch on his bedpost?

Little did Max know that Alec was having similar worries, wondering if she was only kissing him because she missed Logan. Was this just a rebound thing? He felt a moment of fear and it was all that he needed to steel his resolve. He wanted Max but he wasn't desperate enough to take her on any terms but his own. He wanted her and her alone, exclusively. With her it was going to be about love, not just satisfying physical needs. He didn't know if thats what she wanted out of this but he knew just how persuasive he could be, he'd convince her if he had too.

She pulled back slowly and he let her, knowing that pressuring her would never get him anywhere. "Alec..." she started, stopping when her voice broke with emotion, to clear her throat. "I think I'm in love with you."

Of all the things she could have said, that was one he never would have expected, he felt his jaw drop in shock.

"I need to know if you feel the same way or I'm just going to be another one of your conquests. I need to walk into this with my eyes open. I don't think I could handle having my heart broken again, so I need you to tell me, what's the dealio?"

The grin that he gave her was bright enough to light up a city block. "The dealio..." he told her, his tone lightly mocking over her choice of words, "Is that I love you too. I was just wondering what I'd have to do to convince you to make this permanent and exclusive."

She laughed again and he marveled as he always did in the joy of the sound. "You want to convince me?" She asked, voice growing husky and seductive, "I'm sure we could come up with a few things that would work if we really put our minds too it."

It was his turn to laugh then. His Maxie had managed to convince him of a few things, like the fact that Sunday was the best day of the week, ice cream sundaes were like the nectar of the gods, and that there was nothing in the world that could drag a smile out of him faster than the sound of her laughter.

**TOUCH**

Max looked up at the sound of her cell door opening and her eyes widened, full of regret as Alec came walking in, moving gingerly to avoid jarring any of the million and one places on his body that throbbed in agony at the moment. Sitting up, she winced in sympathy and hurried to his side, helping him over to her bunk and easing him down onto it. She helped him pull off his shirt and found herself hissing at the lash marks on his back, still raw and painful looking even after the treatment he'd been given in med bay.

They'd been breeding partners for a month and Renfro had gotten impatient with their lack of results. She'd ordered a physical done on Max a week ago and both she and Alec had been disciplined when it became clear that they had not been copulating as ordered. Alec had allowed himself to be led off to his punishment without a word or even an accusing glance Max's way. It might have been easier for her if he had, it might have allowed her to be irritated or angry instead of feeling this guilt. She knew that the others had been sent to solitary when they'd been unable or unwilling to comply with the orders and so had they, for a full five days without food or water. But Alec had also been whipped and Max had been forced to watch, Renfro at her side, cruelly whispering words about how she poisoned everything she touched.

"I got a new set of orders." Alec told her, breaking the silence. "I'm to copulate with you using any means necessary. There'll be another exam in the morning and if we've failed to comply..." his voiced trailed off. He didn't want to tell Max what the punishment would be. He might have been an assassin for his country but he liked to think he wasn't a bad guy. He didn't want to rape her, no matter what his orders were. Telling her that he'd be sent back to Psy Ops would force her hand and it was close enough to rape in his mind that he couldn't bring himself to say the words. He glanced in her direction and the overwhelming guilt she was feeling showed on her face. "Not your fault, Maxie." He told her tiredly, "You didn't give the order and you didn't ask me to lie about our activities or lack of activites."

She surged to her feet and began to pace. Six steps from one end of the cell to the other; she was making him dizzy but he didn't complain, he just sat on her bunk and chewed on the side of his thumb. She finally seemed to reach some sort of conclusion because she sat back down beside him.

"I...there's someone out there," she waved her hand indicating the world beyond the boundaries of Manticore, "We were..., I think I love him and he thinks I'm dead."

There was a sadness in her eyes and in her voice that cut him like a knife. He put an arm around her shoulders and pulled her close to him, resting his chin on the top of her head.

"He thinks I'm dead." she continued, her sorrow filling the room like a living thing. "He's probably moved on but I've been trying so hard to fight them because I wanted to get back to him."

Alec couldn't bring himself to say anything so he just held her and hoped that his presence was enough.

"Stupid right?" she asked.

"Not stupid Maxie, just...unrealistic. Manticore isn't going to just let you go now that they have you back. I'm guessing this guy isn't one of the other 09'ers which means that he's an ordinary human. We're no good for them, we're a danger to them." And it was Alec's turn to be sorrowful as he remembered Rachel and her father. Robert Berrisford had been a good man and Rachel, she'd shown him what true emotions were. This time Max was the one that offered what comfort she could, rubbing her hand in soothing circles on his upper arm, unable to rub his back because of the lash marks.

It felt good to touch again. Not the cold impersonal touches of the medical personal and guards. Not the painful touches of flesh hitting flesh during sparring, but the gentle touch of friendship.

_Friends_ she told herself leaning up to kiss him, she could follow through with the order because they were friends and it would save her friend pain. Thats what she told herself but the passion that flared to life between them from that simple kiss told a different story. She still wanted to get out of Manticore, to go back to her strange little life but now she knew that when she left, she wouldn't be leaving alone because she couldn't picture herself going anywhere without her smart Alec.


	11. UV

DISCLAIMER:All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement was intended.

AUTHOR'S NOTE: Honestly, I never knew that writing could be this hard. Gah, I've had the idea for Umbrella from the day I started writing this series but it took until today to figure out how to get what was in my head out onto the page. Crazy. I think the story hates me. Wish it was mutual. I kinda like it. It's grown on me. Like fungus. ;) Oh well, maybe y'all can hate it for me? I may not have mentioned this before but I'm sort of becoming a review junkie...I'm almost willing to beg for them. You might want to review cuz it wouldn't be pretty, the begging I mean.

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**UMBRELLA**

I'm so whipped. I'd follow that girl through hell and back, which given the givens is kinda what I'm doing. Which is sorta funny since she'd rather punch me than talk to me most days and when she looks at me she sees my nutzoid twin who asked her to end him, the selfish prick. I don't know when it happened, or how, but I'd fallen in love with Max. My Maxie. There was just something about her, some spark, that drew me to her like a moth to a flame, something that made me want to be a better man so she'd approve of me. Guess that's why when we found out they'd taken her, which wasn't easy by the way, it had taken almost eight months, I let myself get captured by them too. I don't know what I was thinking, maybe that if they took me then at least I'd be close enough to watch her back.

That eight months had sucked more than PsyOps and every other punishment Manticore had ever dished out combined. Not knowing where she was, if she was safe, had been torture. When the intel came it scared the hell out of all of us. None of us had ever suspected that Manticore was part of an umbrella corporation. The big, bad, hellhole that had created us was just an underfunded division of a much larger company. Manticore was the red headed step child of the Tetragametic Foundation and it turns out that they'd started doing snatch and grabs on our people because the shareholders were demanding a return on their investments, Maxie was the first. Eve was the second one they'd tried to take. They'd killed Dalton and had almost killed Gem trying to take her. And they called us monsters.

When I filled Mole, Dix, Luke and Joshua in on my plan, all the remaining members of Max's inner circle except Logan, they didn't like it but they weren't dumb enough to think they could change my mind. The except Logan bit because there was another selfish prick, so whiny and emo that he wouldn't take my word for it that Max was still alive. He'd tried to off himself but in typical Ordinary fashion, he'd botched the job. He was in a coma still, probably a good thing for him, cuz I'd have kicked his ass for doing that to Max, who was no doubt holding on to the hope of making it home to him. Max, who I knew was still alive, because I would have felt it if she'd died. It would have torn a hole in my soul, bigger and more ragged than Rachel's death had. Might have followed Logan's example then, but I'd have done it right because I knew I couldn't live without her anymore, but there was no hole so I still had hope.

So I let them take me, I followed her into hell, now I just had to find her and drag her out.

It was easier to find her than I thought it would be, they'd done their homework, they knew my weaknesses, so they paraded her in front of me, taunting me. Because it walked like Max and talked like Max but it wasn't my Maxie anymore. It was just an empty shell, all hard and hollow eyed.

Tetragametic had managed what Manticore never had. They'd turned Max into a mindless, killing machine that lived to follow orders. If I was a pansy ass, sissy like Logan, I might have cried. But I'm not. Seeing her like that might have worked, might have broken me, but like I said, I'm whipped. We were in hell, but at least I was with her again. I could hold onto my sanity, my self, and I could help her reclaim hers. We'd get out of here, I'd make sure of it.

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When they'd ordered me into the holding room, I felt nothing but boredom. I was holding my carefully constructed mask in place, biding my time. I had to play along until I could escape and make my way back home. I know they thought they'd broken me. Idiots. Even Renfro had been smarter than that, at least the Ice Bitch had been able to see through my act.

I wasn't broken but finding out that they'd captured Alec brought me damn close. He was what I was holding on too after all, the hope that I'd be able to escape and find him so that I could tell him how I really felt. Funny how it was being here that had forced me to realize that I was in love with him. They'd tried to use Logan to break me, like Renfro before them, but I'd been able to resist. They'd wanted two things from me, help bring in Manticore's other creations and a willing puppet for assassinations and covert missions. For once I'd been able to put my family before Logan. He was one man, they were many and the good of the many always outweighed the good of the few. But then I'd overheard them talking about a list of potential replacements for me. Alec topped the list. No way I was going to let them take him, they'd put him through the new and improved version of PsyOps they'd cooked up. He'd suffered that pain enough to last a hundred lifetimes.

So I started to show signs of breaking. I was careful, I didn't want them to suspect that I was trying to play them. About a week later they'd dragged me back to my cell and I had to ask myself why I'd go through this to save Alec when I wouldn't do it for Logan. The answer had me spun. I loved Alec. It wasn't what I'd had with Logan. It wasn't sweet and romantic. No, what I felt for Alec, what I'd fought so damn hard it made my teeth ache, was primal and instinctual. It was, given the givens, fucking scary.

And now, despite everything I'd done in order to save him, they had him. He was there, tied to a chair and I knew what they had in store for him. Time for pretending was about to come to a end. I was going to help him hold on to his sanity, his sense of self and then, then we'd get the hell out of here. I'd make sure of it. When were these idiots going to learn that they might have created us, trained us, but they'd never control us again?

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**VACATION**

Max had to fight back her desperate desire to laugh. She knew if she let it out it would have a hysterical edge that Logan would take offense too and she was not in the mood to sooth his ego at the moment. One week since they'd managed to divert the apocalypse, not that the Ordinaries had any idea, and their infirmary was still full to the point of overflowing and he was talking about an Eyes Only mission that he felt needed to be handled immediately. The urge to hit him was difficult to resist but she'd probably kill him if she sneezed on him so a punch was out of the question. Shoving her hands into her pockets in an effort to aide her ever weakening resolve, she continued to walk towards her office, the place she'd been headed when Logan had intercepted her. Noticing the light was on and the door was open just a crack she stopped dead in her tracks and frowned. Who the hell was in her office?

Vaguely she heard Logan yammering on in the background, trying to drag her attention back to him and his plan to thwart the evil machinations of someone or other and she found herself waving her hand at him in a futile effort to get him to go away, sort of like when you'd shoo a fly and it just came right back to buzz in your ear some more. It didn't work in other words but he seemed to catch on to the fact that something was up. Finally.

Shifting her feet and bending slightly at the knees she started to move forward, slowly and silently, stopping only to glare at Logan when he made a move to follow her. His nostril flared in anger but she found that she couldn't care less. You'd think he'd be clued in to how dangerous the world was after the war and the plague and everything. What was he going to do from his wheelchair?

Creeping to the door, she sniffed the air delicately, trying to make as little sound as possible. All the tension eased out of her body when she processed the familiar scent. Alec, it was just Alec.

Wait a second god damn it! Alec was supposed to be in the infirmary, what the hell was he doing in her office. Straightening she pushed open the door and strode into the room, intent on giving him a piece of her mind. He'd taken three bullets, one in the shoulder, two in the gut, not too long ago, he was still recovering, the idiot. Seeing him asleep on the couch though pulled her up short. He was still pale and gaunt, with shadows under his eyes so dark they looked like bruises, as though he was recovering from a broken nose. He looked better than he had when she'd looked in on him that morning. He looked...peaceful, a look that she hadn't seen on him in over a year.

Logan came up behind her, he could tell that there was no danger by the way she'd stood up from her crouch and had halted just inside the doorway. "Max..." he began but was cut off by the death glare she was shot his way, she'd never looked at him like that before. She looked fiercely protective and murderous. She didn't turn back until he nodded his understanding, letting her know that he'd stay silent for the moment.

He didn't like the way that her expression softened when she looked back into her office. She looked, gentle, loving, and it rankled that it wasn't directed at him. He glanced around her and his anger grew, seeing that it was Alec that she was looking at with so much affection. His mouth closed with an audible snap and he cleared his throat quietly, trying to get her attention back. It might have worked if it hadn't woken Alec up.

The transgenic had struggled to his feet, gun in hand, just second before Max reached his side. She placed her hand over his and exerted gentle pressure, forcing him to lower it. Even white as a sheet, sweating and swaying on his feet, he looked dangerous to Logan, especially since he was still looking around the room for potential threats. His eyes settled on Max, standing at his side and all the menace drained out of his eyes. He tried to smirk at her but there was too much affection to have the affect it once had.

Logan watched helplessly as Max slipped her slight body under his arm, supporting his weight as she eased him back down onto the couch. She helped him lay down and get comfortable before taking off her own jacket to settle it over him as a makeshift blanket. He stared up at her, hazel green eyes wide and questioning until she reached out and brushed his hair back from his forehead gently. A ghost of a smile tilted up the corners of his lips and his eyes fluttered closed and he was soon sound asleep once again.

Max stayed where she was for another moment or two, continuing to gently stroke Alec's hair. Eventually she seemed to remember Logan and she rose to her feet with a sigh. Indicating that they should take their discussion outside with a tilt of her head, she moved swiftly and silently toward the door, pausing to take one last look at Alec before exiting the room.

The whole exchanged had taken place in less than five minutes and in less than five minutes Logan finally accepted what had been staring him in the face all along. He'd lost Max, although at the moment he wasn't certain he'd ever had her. He knew it wasn't the virus that had ended their relationship. It wasn't Alec either, not really. It was the fact that there were parts of her that he could never understand because he'd never walked in her shoes. It was the fact that he was concerned with the great good of all of America and she was concerned with the safety and protection of her people. Smiling a sad sort of smile, he shook his head at her, knowing she could read the thoughts on his face easily enough.

Reaching into the bag hanging from his wheelchair he pulled out the plane tickets he'd tucked inside. "There wasn't really a mission. I was going to try and talk you into going away with me to take care of it and surprise you with a vacation instead. I think you should go with Alec instead."

Max felt her eyes well with tears. "Logan..." She wasn't sure what she was going to say, that she was sorry, that he was a good man, something, anything to ease the hurt in his eyes.

"Just," He shook his head and smiled at her, "Just be happy with him Max."

She nodded and returned his smile with one of her own, albeit a watery one. "I am."

She watched him leave and it wasn't until after he was out of sight that she turned and walked back into her office. She sat down on the floor beside the couch, pulling her knees up and resting her cheek on top of them. She wrapped her arms around her legs and watched Alec sleep. She wasn't surprised when he woke up seconds later. He didn't lunge to his feet this time, there was no panic or fear for his own safety in his eyes as he blinked sleepily at her.

"Maxie?" He questioned with concern evident in his voice and it made her laugh. Here he was, weak and hurting, though he'd never admit it, and he was worried about her?

"Go back to sleep Alec, I won't let anything happen to you." She told him, feeling the need to sooth him, perhaps unnecessarily. He just stared at her, quiet for once. "Logan and I just ended things."

Normally he would have made some crack about how often she'd ended it before just to run right back to him but there was something in her eyes, her voice, that told him this time it really was over.

"Why?" He asked quietly too afraid to allow himself to hope.

"He realized that I don't love him anymore." She said and watched in awe as his eyes seemed to glow from within.

"Yeah?" He asked again, still quiet, although this time there was hope, just a little hope.

"I..." she stopped, her voice broke. She'd never said the words to a man, that she didn't think of as a sibling, before. Not even Logan had gotten the words. She swallowed past the lump in her throat, then cleared it, twice. She lifted her eyes and locked her gaze with his. Gathering all of her courage she tried again, "I love _you_." She told him.

He didn't respond right away and she steeled herself for some smart aleck remark that would kill the mood and then as the seconds ticked by in silence, she steeled herself some more, for rejection.

Alec couldn't believe his ears. He'd loved her for so long. He'd given up all hope that she'd ever feel the same, had convinced himself that friendship would be enough. He knew it would have been better, easier, to walk away but he couldn't. It hurt too much to be separated from her. Which might explain why he'd jumped in front of the bullets that White and his cronies had sent her way. If he couldn't stand to walk away from her, how could he survive her dying?

"Do you know," he began, forcing himself to drop the mask that he lived behind for so long, "I gave up waiting for you to love me back?" He laughed then, a weird mix of exaltation and bitterness. "I love you Maxie. I've always loved you." He was feeling light headed, maybe because he was still healing, maybe because she'd just made all of his dreams come true. Well maybe not all. "Marry me?" He asked impulsively but with perfect seriousness.

Max nodded, misty eyed. Who'd want a vacation when you could have a honeymoon instead anyway?


	12. WX

DISCLAIMER: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement was intended.

AUTHOR'S NOTE: I don't know if they ever mentioned Biggs' designation on the show but for the sake of the story WAGER, his is X5-511. ;) This is a companion piece to the other story I'm working on, Deepening Shadows.

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WAGER

X5-511 wasn't a stupid guy. Genetically engineered and all, with a boosted IQ, it was pretty much impossible for him to be stupid. Which was why he couldn't figure out just how he'd ended up in this situation. The first rule of gambling is pretty simple, _Never bet more than you can afford to lose_. Could he afford to lose any cash left over from the mission funds on his next three assignments? Sure. It'd cut into his fun but it would hardly kill him. No, what he couldn't afford was the crushing blow to his ego for forgetting the second rule of gambling. _Never bet against X5-494._

It all started during morning inspection. The recaptured 09'ers, 493 and 452, had finally been cleared to return to duty and had fallen in with them for the first time. He couldn't help but think that 452 was quite the little hottie, despite her being a traitor, so he'd elbowed 494 and jerked his chin in her direction, wiggling his eyebrows and pretending to wolf whistle. Having the drill instructor turn his attention their way had kept him from seeing 494's reaction. If he had the murderously possessive look in his friend's eyes might have kept him from ever making that stupid bet. But he hadn't seen it and had thought that playing with the 09'er could be fun. Of course if PsyOps had done anywhere near the number on her that they'd done on that other 09'er female 734, it'd be quite the challenge. He'd thought the wager up during weapons drill and suggested it to 494 as they walked toward the chow hall for lunch.

The terms were simple, they would each try and befriend her and get her into bed. She'd been out in the world long enough that like Lola she probably knew her fair share of tricks, he told 494. Whoever bedded her first would win the left over funds from the loser's next three missions. Caught up in what he was convinced was a great plan, he failed, for a second time, to notice the look in 494's eyes. It was a dangerous look, the threat of violence there was easy to read but after a second 494 shook his head and the look was gone, replaced in a flash with something much more mischievous. That look alone, which 511 did catch, was enough to spark his feelings of concern. This wasn't a new game, they'd played it before on missions and had each won their way into the hearts and beds of their share of women. He told himself that he was jumping at shadows and dismissed his worries.

They walked into the mess and immediately spotted the three 09'ers sitting together but isolated from everyone else. It didn't take a genius to realize that they weren't exactly being welcomed warmly back into the fold. Too often over the years Manticore had drilled into their soldiers that the members of unit two were traitors. So even though plenty of them understood the desire to escape, it was hard to accept them.

After filling their trays with food, 511 and 494 exchanged a glance and headed straight for the 09'ers table, sitting down without waiting for an invitation or permission.

511 knew he'd lost the bet seconds after sitting down. The normally stoic 734 actually smiled softly at 494 while 493 stared at him for a second or two and then nodded curtly at him. Those two reactions were enough to make him nervous and to let him know that he was out of the loop about something going on between the four of them. It was 452's reaction that was the most telling though. 494 reached out to snag the roll off of her tray and she slapped his hand away without looking at him, like she'd been expecting it all along. "Uh uh, pretty boy, that's mine, keep your hands to yourself or you're gonna walk away with with a couple of bloody stumps." There was a thread of affection running through the words that made the threat meaningless and none of them missed the way that 494 reached across the table and gently stroked the back of 452's hand before grabbing the roll again and stuffing it whole into his mouth before she could stop him. She laughed then, softly enough not to draw the attention of the TAC leaders but audible to transgenic ears. Every eye in the place was on her then. "Smart Aleck, " She teased gently, oblivious of the face that she was the center of attention. 494 finished chewing and swallowing and then grinned charmingly at her. "Whatever Maxie, whatever."

Even as 494 reached out and slapped him upside the back of the head, 511 was grimacing and kicking himself for not remembering the second rule of gambling.

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Xerox

Xerox, duplicate, clone, carbon copy of the original product. For years after the escape in 09 it had been drilled into Alec's head that that was all he was, all he could be, a cheap knock of the traitor 493. He'd worked hard, harder than almost all of the others because he wanted to prove that he was good, the best. He knew that when they looked at him they saw his brother, so he fought against it, tried to be the model soldier but he couldn't get it right, the debacle with Rachel had proven that. It had only gotten worse when 493 had started to perform amateur dental surgery because they'd taken him to PsyOps and had pulled him apart, wanting to find his defects. If the original had flaws, the copy must be even worse.

Renfro had called him to her office and told him that he'd been assigned 452 as his breeding partner. She'd smirked at him and told him that he was under no circumstances to achieve that objective, although it was his official mission. He and 452 might have been a perfect genetic match but Manticore didn't want him passing on his defective genes.

He'd walked into the cell that night and she'd called him Ben and said they must be twinned. He wanted to correct her. Not twined, cloned, copied. But it wouldn't help achieve his mission objectives so he called on his training and pretended to be indifferent.

Max got Manticore burned to the ground and released them into the world. He had freedom, in a world where no one knew he was nothing but an imitation, he had freedom but he still knew he was walking, talking imperfection.

White had taken him and he'd tried to save his own skin. He'd been willing to kill Joshua and Max until he looked down at her and remembered he was defective. His life wasn't worth the loss of an original. She'd saved him anyway and he'd fallen in love with her for it.

He'd followed her, helped her, watched her back. He wanted her to look at him and see him for himself. She didn't. He'd been arrested and he found out that she still looked at him and saw Ben. Fucking Brother Ben, he was all anyone ever saw. He stuck by her side though, suddenly obsessed with the need to make her see him, really see him.

She tried to use him to drive her boyfriend away. She let everyone think they were together and then held Logan's hand for the world to see. He'd seen red because she was showing them that the Ordinary had more worth than the knock off and he was tired of being second rate. She'd held his hand and then with a gentle squeeze and a goodbye, she'd walked away from Logan and had come to him. She'd placed her arms around him, buried her face in his chest and sighed. She'd told him that she was glad that he was okay, that he'd stayed to fight by her side. She looked up at him with liquid brown eyes and it hit him that she saw him. Maybe she'd seen him all along. Maybe he was the one that was blind.

Two years to the day later she married him. As they stood before the justice of the peace, holding hands and staring into each others eyes, he forgot for the first time that he was a copy and became Alec in his own mind.


	13. YZ

DISCLAIMER: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement was intended.

AUTHOR'S NOTE: OMG, its over, done, finito. I'm kinda sad. :( But impressed with myself and loving you guys because most of you stuck around from the beginning. Well, its not completely done, since I've still got The Wooing of Max which is a spin off of GIRL going. And some people were interested in seeing LAST, MIND, QUARANTINE, AND UMBRELLA continued and I made a few promises about doing those. :) But Dark Angel Alphabetically is finished. Hope you guys enjoyed the ride. :) Also, I just want to say that no, I have not changed my opinion about Logan, I still think he's a self involved ass but I also think that he enjoys feeling like a martyr and if that motivates him to get the hell out of the way for Max and Alec who make far more sense in my opinion, then I'll use it. : P

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**YAWN**

Shark DNA or not, a girl still needs to sleep sometimes. Which is why Max was trying to work up the energy to be angry at Alec for waking her up. He'd barged into her room and plopped down on the side of her bed, sitting with his hands tucked under his thighs, bouncing up and down with childlike excitement. She wanted to be mad at him, it was just minutes after she'd fallen asleep for the first time in a week, so mad was what she should feel, she told herself.

"Maxxxxie!" His voice rang out, disgustingly cheerful and far too loud. His enthusiasm and impatience were kind of adorable, not that she'd ever let him know she thought so. And she could hardly blame him, it was the first Christmas he'd ever gotten to celebrate after all. She wanted to be angry but found herself smiling indulgently instead. A glance at her bedside clock showed it was 12:02am, so technically Christmas morning had arrived. She laughed, she couldn't help it, and jumped out of the bed and raced into the living room of the tiny apartment they shared with her partner in crime, second in command, and best friend hot on her heels.

His arms came around her waist and he tackled her to the ground, twisting as they fell so that he was beneath her to cushion her fall, both of them laughing like loons. She rolled off of him so that they laid side by side, looking up at the tree they'd stolen and decorated with their own handmade ornaments, settling into the quiet contentment that speaks of close friendship.

Eventually though, she sat up and grinned at him before moving to the small pile of presents beneath the tree to pull one out addressed to him. She handed it to him with a smile and watched him tear open the wrapping paper with childlike abandon.

A few minutes later he looked up from his haul, a black cable knit sweater that zipped up the front, a few pre-pulse movies, and some popcorn, to catch Max watching him with a strange sort of smile on her face. Her own presents were unopened in front of her and he cocked an eyebrow at her. Her blush was adorable. Max didn't do adorable. Fiesty, bitchy, deadly, yes, but never adorable. He felt strangely honored to be allowed to see that side of her.

It was his turn to watch in delight as she opened her gifts. Upgrades for three of the parts to her ninja, some warm, fuzzy socks (because he knew her feet were always cold), and a basket of some fresh fruit which had taken more than a few of the favors owed to him to procure.

She looked at him and grinned and he found himself leaning forward to kiss her, consequences be damned. And she kissed him back. When they finally pulled apart to catch their breath, they started into each other's eyes with something akin to awe. The spell was only broken when Max was unable to stifle a yawn.

He stared at her in shock as she lifted up her arms, silently entreating him to carry her to bed. He lifted her easily onto his lap and then rose smoothly to his feet. He'd taken no more than two steps in the direction of her room when a shake of her head had him changing course and he soon found himself depositing her onto his own bed. He curled himself around her and help her while she slept, drinking in the sight of her, unable to believe it was really happening.

He still didn't believe it, not really, not until she'd woken up from the best night's sleep she'd ever had and smiled up at him in contentment instead of kicking his ass. The smile lasted only second before slipping away and he felt his chest tighten with trepidation, sure that she was about to freak out and rip him a new one but she just leaned up instead and captured his lips with her own.

All he could think was that Christmas was the best holiday EVER and Max's love was one hell of a present!

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ZIPPER

Logan had seen Max and Alec coming out of her apartment looking more comfortable with each other than he'd ever seen them and had assumed the worst. Having her confirm his fears had hurt. Bad. He'd believed it too, until the flag raising ceremony when she'd held his hand and when she'd come clean a short while later he'd felt an overwhelming sense of relief.

That hadn't lasted long though. His hope had drained away, leaving nothing but resignation in it's wake when he'd seen her bring Alec his jacket the next morning. It was something that Logan could have dismissed as concern for a friend but then she'd helped him put it on, moving slowly and carefully, movements tender as she did her best not to jar his injured shoulder.

She'd zipped the jacket closed for him, resting her hand lightly on his chest for a moment, her eyes catching his before she moved away.

That's when Logan knew without a shadow of a doubt. Max and Alec loved each other though neither was ready to admit it. Maybe Manticore had had it right, maybe they were made for each other.

Logan moved forward and took Max's hand, savoring the sensation for just a second before drawing her away from the others. He would do what needed to be done, he would end things between them because if anyone deserved a happy ending it was them. He wouldn't stand in their way. Really he didn't believe anything could. The two of them...it just seemed like destiny.


End file.
